I Wanna
by dementedappletree
Summary: Blaine misses Kurt and transfers to McKinley. Everything is going well, until Kurt's budding friendship with Karofsky complicates things. No Kurtofsky romance. Sequel to Summertime, but it is not necessary to have read that to read this fic.
1. Just Another Day Without You

Author's Note: So here it is! Turns out I had more time to write than I thought. This story is the sequel to my other fic, Summertime, but I don't think you necessarily need to have read that to understand the plot. Hopefully the rest of New Directions seem in character, I'm mostly used to writing Kurt and Blaine. And obviously I do not own Glee, nor do I own the song that Blaine performs at the end of the chapter. The only thing I own is the story. Thanks for reading, and enjoy!

School had started again, with Blaine going to Dalton and Kurt at McKinley. It had been okay last year, going to different schools, when the two of them were still getting used to being boyfriends. They'd missed each other, of course, but they'd dealt with it and still seen each other often enough.

Blaine had been very disappointed, actually. After finally realizing that his feelings for Kurt were, well, let's just say, "more than friendly", and asking him out, Kurt had almost immediately moved back to McKinley. And Blaine had missed him a lot more than he let on. It was hard, after being able to see Kurt every day, to suddenly have him torn away. He'd understood, of course. But still. He'd felt a little lost without Kurt. Dalton seemed empty.

And this year it was even worse. They'd spent almost the entire summer in constant contact, and now Blaine was expected to survive without him? He loved the Warblers, he really did, but they didn't make up for Kurt's absence. He felt as though he lived for the times they spent together at the coffee shop, meeting whenever they were able to. It could never be enough.

Kurt missed Blaine. The rest of New Directions teased him for the love struck look he apparently assumed whenever he thought of Blaine, and then he would sigh and ignore them in favor of reliving a happy hour he had spent with Blaine the previous afternoon.

This, however, could be difficult when the choir room was filled with shouts, laughter, and the inevitable arguing. Rachel was angry that Mr Schuester had passed her over for a solo – ignoring the fact that the rest of them hardly ever got solos, and Santana's voice was far better suited to the song.

Kurt was sick of it. He missed Blaine's voice, his kind eyes, and the way his boyfriend's smile would light up a room. He even missed Blaine's immature jokes. Most of all, her missed being able to kiss his boyfriend whenever he felt like it, instead of the stolen hours at the Lima Bean, when both of them had a little less homework than normal, or just decided that homework wasn't that important compared with seeing each other for a little while. He had definitely come a long way from being embarrassed when Blaine mentioned that he needed to work on being sexy.

Blaine came to the conclusion that drastic action was needed. He ran his plan past of his friends, remembering how they had helped with the disastrous "Warbler's Gap Attack" the previous year. He was fairly certain this one would go over better, but he wanted a second opinion.

"So, do you think it'll work?"

"Kurt won't know what hit him," his friend assured him. "And I'm pretty sure you can rule out rejection with this one."

"One problem, though. I'll have to miss a bit of school."

"We'll cover for you," they promised.

"Thanks, guys."

Kurt was fast growing impatient with the other members of New Directions. He loved them, and had missed their insanity somewhat when he went to Dalton, but he'd quickly gone back to his previous policy of mostly ignoring them. He looked over at Mercedes and rolled his eyes. She shrugged. Kurt had been rather annoyed the Mercedes had neglected to tell him of her relationship with Sam, but the two openly held hands now, and Kurt was very happy for her, despite his irritation.

There was a knock on the door of the choir room. Mr Schuester got up gratefully to answer it, hoping whoever it was would distract his unruly students. Kurt looked up as his teacher opened the door, and was shocked to see Blaine, politely waiting to be admitted into the choir room.

"SPY!" Rachel screamed. "SPYYYYYYYY!"

"Rachel, calm down," Kurt said. "First of all, this is _Blaine._ He's not going to steal our set list. Second, you shouldn't be worried about that, seeing as we don't even _have _a set list yet."

Rachel folded her arms, refusing to admit that he was right. "He could still be up to something."

"So why are you here?" Mr Schue asked.

Blaine suddenly looked unsure of himself. "I... um... wanted to sing. In front of... you guys."

Mr Schue looked interested. "Go ahead."

Blaine had brought a set of speakers and an iPod with him, and set them up on a table at the front of the room. He turned to face the Glee club.

"So, I'm singing this song to Kurt. Actually, that should be pretty obvious, once you hear it, but... anyway. Hopefully you'll enjoy it."

He turned the speakers on, and Kurt tried to figure out what song it was. The intro sounded sort of like "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For", by U2. Kurt felt a sudden flash of panic. Was Blaine breaking up with him? Then Blaine started singing, and Kurt stopped worrying about that. In fact, he stopped worrying about anything at all.

_I never thought that I was so blind_  
><em> I can finally see the truth<em>  
><em> It's me for you<em>

Now Kurt recognized what the song really was. He was partly amazed at his boyfriend's audacity to sing something like that in front of New Directions, but mostly completely unable to take his eyes off Blaine. He looked unbelievably sexy, singing passionately straight to Kurt._  
><em>

_ Tonight you can't imagine that I'm by your side_  
><em> 'Cause it's never gonna be the truth<em>  
><em> So far for you<em>

_ But can you hear me say?_  
><em> Don't throw me away<em>  
><em> And there's no way out<em>  
><em> I gotta hold you somehow<em>

Blaine had evidently been feeling exactly as he had. It was hard, being apart for so long._  
><em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> Everyday but all I have is time<em>  
><em> Our love's the perfect crime<em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> Every way and when they set me free<em>  
><em> Just put your hands on me<em>

It was getting a little more intense now. Blaine's gaze was fixated on him, and Kurt marveled at his charisma, being able to pull off a song like this and making it completely believable, as though he had written each line himself._  
><em>

_ Take everything that I know you'll break_  
><em> And I give my life away<em>  
><em> Too far, from you<em>  
><em> But can you hear me say<em>  
><em> Don't throw me away<em>  
><em> There's no way out<em>  
><em> I gotta hold you somehow<em>

_Wow. _Somewhat melodramatic, but Kurt could tell he meant every word._  
><em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> Everyday but all I have is time<em>  
><em> Our love's the perfect crime<em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> Every way and when they set me free<em>  
><em> Just put your hands on me<em>

_ Tonight I'm weak_  
><em> It's just another day without you<em>  
><em> I can't sleep<em>  
><em> I gave away the world for you to<em>

_ Hear me say_  
><em> Don't throw me away<em>  
><em> And there's no way out<em>  
><em> I gotta hold you somehow<em>

It was almost painful, how similar their thoughts had been. He felt a surge of love for Blaine._  
><em>

_ All I wanna do is touch you_  
><em> I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you<em>  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> Everyday but all I have is time<em>  
><em> Our love's the perfect crime<em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> Every way and when they set me free<em>  
><em> Just put your hands on me<em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> But all I have is time<em>  
><em> Our love's the perfect crime<em>

_ I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you_  
><em> You wanna touch me too<em>  
><em> And when they me free<em>  
><em> Just put your hands on me<em>

The music faded out, and there was an outbreak of whistling and catcalls from the rest of the Glee club. Kurt turned pink and looked away from Blaine. Santana was directing an extremely rude hand gesture at him, and Puck was looking impressed and giving Blaine a thumbs up. Rachel looked extremely jealous, and Finn seemed to be wondering if he had to worry about Blaine as competition. He found Mercedes' face. She was smiling at him and mouthing "I think you found a good one." He smiled back. She was absolutely right.

"Well, that wasn't what I was expecting at all," Mr Schuester said. "But it was certainly very impressive." He looked at Blaine seriously. "I realize that you're in the Warblers, but I think you would make a great addition to our Glee club. Would you consider switching to McKinley?"

Blaine shifted his feet. "I've been thinking about it. I haven't decided yet. I need to talk to a few people." He looked at Kurt when he said this. "But thank you very much for the offer."

Kurt broke into a wide smile. He stood up and walked towards Blaine, then kissed him, not caring that the entirety of New Directions were watching.

A/N: The song is "I Wanna" by the All-American Rejects, and you can listen to it here: http: / www .youtube . com/w atch?v=Qw m7crkV124


	2. Convincing

A/N: I'll try to update this more often, now. Sorry about that. Those one shots kept popping up in my brain and yelling at me to write them. And when inspiration strikes... it's hard for me to ignore. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and I hope you like the direction that I'm taking this fic. I've got it all planned out now (I was pretty much making Summertime up as I went along, except for near the end), and it seems likely that I'll need to change the rating to M for this one... As always, I do not own Glee, although I would very much like to meet the cast. Particularly certain members... ;) *cough* Darren *cough* *cough* Chris *cough* Sorry. Had a sudden attack of coughing there for some reason. Have fun reading, and please tell me anything you particularly like or dislike.

They walked to Blaine's car, holding hands.

"So, you really want to transfer to McKinley?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah. I've been thinking about it a lot lately. I think I will, if I can convince my parents. Unless..." He looked at Kurt.

"Unless what?"

"Well, unless you don't want me to."

"Don't be an idiot, Blaine."

Blaine smiled sheepishly. "It was a possibility."

"No, it really wasn't. You don't know how much I've missed you these past few weeks."

"Probably not as much as I've missed you."

Kurt shook his head. Blaine was obviously confused.

Blaine drove Kurt back to his house. Kurt kissed him softly before he left the car, then pulled away.

"No... Don't go," Blaine said.

"Sorry. I have homework to do, and I doubt I'd get much done if you were there."

"And that's a problem because...?"

"Well I do plan to apply for colleges later this year..."

"That's not important," Blaine told him.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Text me later?"

"I wouldn't have to if you stayed in the car."

"Blaine."

Blaine sighed regretfully. "Of course I'll text you. I always do."

"Love you, Blaine."

"Love you too."

Kurt went inside, and Blaine watched him go. _I can't believe I'll be going to the same school as him soon._ There was no doubt in Blaine's mind that he would get his parents to agree; he could be very convincing when he felt like it, and he wanted this too much to give up without a fight.

He drove the two hours to Westerville, planning how he would convince his parents to let him transfer. He pulled into the driveway of his house. It was a Friday, so he wasn't staying at Dalton that night.

Blaine's parents weren't home yet. As he walked in the door, he heard the phone ringing. He picked it up. "Hello? Anderson residence."

"Mr Anderson?" The woman had a dry, administrative sort of voice.

"Yes..."

"Your son wasn't here for last period today. Can you provide an explanation for this?"

_Oh shit. _He'd forgotten about that. Apparently the Warblers hadn't covered for him as well as he'd hoped. "Blaine got sick during lunch. He called me to pick him up, and I guess we forgot to call the school," Blaine lied. Sometimes it was handy, sounding like his father.

"Dalton has a very strict attendance policy, sir. Too many incidents like this, and your son could lose his place at Dalton."

"It won't happen again," Blaine assured her.

"See that it doesn't." She hung up, and Blaine breathed a sigh of relief.

He went upstairs to do his homework, and heard his mother come in a few hours later. "Blaine?"

"Hi, Mom," he called.

"Do you want dinner soon?" she asked.

"Yes, please."

He went downstairs, tired of doing his homework, and turned on the television.

His phone buzzed in his pocket. He opened it.

_Did you ask them yet?_

_My mom only just got home. I'll wait until dinner, _he sent back.

_Okay. Tell me what happens._

_It'll be fine._

_I hope so._

He spent half an hour watching "How I Met Your Mother" and admiring Neil Patrick Harris. He and Kurt talked for a while longer. His father arrived home right before the show finished, and dinner was ready a few minutes later._  
><em>

_Dinner now. Text you what happened later._

_Bye._

He sat down at the table.

"How was your day?" his mother asked.

"Pretty good."

He ate his macaroni and cheese while his parents talked. They'd long since given up on making him give them every detail of his day.

When he finished his food, Blaine spoke up.

"Can I talk to you about something?"

His parents looked at him in surprise. He rarely volunteered information at dinner.

"Sure honey," his mom said. "What is it?"

"I want to transfer to McKinley."

His parents exchanged looks.

"Is this about Kurt?" his mother asked.

"Partly. But mostly, I just don't feel right at Dalton anymore."

She looked concerned. "Why not?"

"I just feel... stifled. Dalton's great, but it's not the real world."

"We've paid a lot of money for you to go there," his father reminded him.

"I know. And I'm grateful for that. But I don't fit in very well recently."

"McKinley won't challenge you," his dad told him.

"I know. But I get good grades at Dalton, and I'm sure I'll continue to do that at McKinley."

"What about your friends?" Mrs Anderson asked.

"They're great, but Wes and David graduated last year, so I don't really feel close to anyone anymore."

"You'll have to drive there every morning."

"I know. I'm willing to do that."

"I don't know..." his mother said. "You still haven't given us a convincing reason."

He had thought they'd say that, so he pulled out his trump card. Looking at his dad (as he was sure that this would mean more to him), he said: "I regret not staying at my old school. I felt like a coward, running away, and I still do. I want to... not face those bullies in particular, but stand up to people who have bullied someone I care about."

His father mulled this over, looking impressed at this argument.

With more emotion in his voice, he continued. "They've hurt Kurt really badly in the past, Dad. That's why he transferred to Dalton. This..." He paused, not wanting to swear in front of his parents. "This guy, he threatened to kill Kurt. And I'm afraid he'll get hurt again this year."

His parents actually looked like they were considering it now.

"Your father and I will talk about it, Blaine," his mother told. It sounded as though she had made up her mind, though. He wasn't sure if that was good or bad.

"Okay." He got up from the table and texted Kurt from the living room couch.

_They're discussing it._

_Do you think it went well?_

_I can't really tell. I'll let you know as soon as they tell me._

He thought about turning on the TV again, but was too nervous, so he waited, tapping his foot impatiently.

He could hear his parents talking in low voices, but couldn't make out what they were saying.

The door to the dining room opened.

"We've decided..."

He sat up straighter.

"That you can go," his father said. "We'll call the school, but you can probably start on Monday. And Blaine, we expect you to drive yourself there every morning, and keep up your grades."

"I will. I promise." He tried to quell the happiness that was threatening to choke him. "Thank you," he said sincerely.

"You're welcome."

He got up to go to his bedroom.

"And Blaine?" his mother said.

He turned back to look at her.

"Tell Kurt we're sorry for what happened to him."

He was touched by his parents' concern. If she was telling the truth when she said 'we', his father had certainly come a long way since the summer. The man he had known for most of his life wouldn't have expressed any sympathy for Kurt's plight.

"I will."

He went upstairs and sent Kurt a text.

_They said yes! I'll most likely start on Monday._

_I can't wait!_

He smiled at his phone. Suddenly the year ahead looked a lot brighter._  
><em>


	3. Accidentally

Author's Note: Firstly, I do not own Glee, or the song in this chapter. Secondly, I apologize for the long wait, I keep wanting to write chapters that happen later on... Let's just say I'm really liking how it's going so far. You ain't seen nothing yet. ;) In other news, this chapter is complete fluff. Enjoy!_  
><em>

_He was sitting with Kurt in his car, kissing, no one to interrupt them... until Kurt's phone went off.  
><em>

_"Bzzt, bzzt, bzzt."_

"Gaaah," Blaine groaned. He glared at his alarm clock. "I hate you with the burning fire of a thousand suns." Then he remembered what day it was, and sat up, wide awake.

_Kurt! Today's the day!_

_It's too early to be awake._

_But aren't you excited_?

_Yes, Blaine. But I am not a morning person, as you should know._

_:D :D :D_

_Shut up._

Blaine smiled at his phone.

_See you soon. :D_

_I'm looking forward to it._

_It doesn't sound like it..._

_Trust me, I am. I'll see you later, Blaine._

_See you! XD_

Kurt rolled his eyes. Really, he was just as excited as Blaine, but he had a reputation of aloofness to uphold. He'd tried to convince his boyfriend to go shopping with him over the weekend. Sadly, Blaine had told him that despite what most people thought, he actually did own clothes that weren't Dalton uniform. He'd promised that whatever he wore, Kurt would like it, and he was looking forward to it, half with dread, half with anticipation.

He drove to school after breakfast, and met Blaine in the parking lot. His boyfriend was wearing a blue checkered shirt, which Kurt eyed appreciatively. "You pass," he said happily.

Blaine grabbed his hand, and swung it back and forth. He seemed to be high on excitement. "This is so awesome."

They walked through the halls, ignoring the stares. "Hey fags, where do you think you're going?"

It was one of the random jocks that Kurt never spoke to, only exchanged 'pleasantries' with in the hallway. "To class," he answered politely. "How about you? The land of ignorance and stupidity?"

The jock moved towards him threateningly, but was stopped by another football player. "Leave him alone," Karofsky said.

The other kid gave him a look. "You used to be cool."

"And I'm not anymore?"

The jock shook his head and walked away in disgust.

Needless to say, Kurt was surprised. Karofsky had started the Bully Whips last year with Santana, but he'd always been under the impression that that was simply to become Prom King. Although that hadn't worked out very well for him...

"Why did you help us?" he asked.

Karofsky shrugged. "Because you needed it."

Kurt looked at him suspiciously. "Thanks, I guess."

He and Blaine walked away.

"What was that about?" Blaine asked.

"I don't know... It's weird, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm sure my year will be much better if he's no longer pushing me into lockers all the time... Come to think of it, he hasn't touched me once this year."

"Maybe he really is trying to become a better person."

"I hope so," Kurt said. "Even with everything he did to me."

Blaine looked at him lovingly. Though Kurt had been put through hell, he was still willing to forgive Karofsky. "You're amazing."

"Thanks," said Kurt. "I try."

The rest of the day passed without incident, until Glee. They walked in, hand in hand, and Mr Schue greeted them with a smile. "Blaine! I take it this means that you'll be joining us?"

"Yep."

"Does he need an audition?" Kurt asked.

"I think we already took care of that," the teacher said.

"Hey!" Rachel objected. "_Everyone _has to audition. No exceptions."

"Lauren didn't," Puck pointed out.

"But she's proved herself!"

Kurt put his hands on his hips. "And Blaine hasn't? Have you _seen _him sing?"

"He's sexy," Santana said, licking her lips.

Blaine took a step back, slightly disturbed. "Is that normal?" he whispered to Kurt.

"Don't worry," Kurt said. "She does that to anyone who's vaguely attractive."

"So I'm only vaguely attractive?" Blaine said teasingly.

"You know what I mean." He turned back to Rachel. "This is ridiculous. Blaine is an excellent singer, and he will be a fantastic addition to this club."

"He has to try out," she said stubbornly.

"Is this because he rejected you?" Kurt asked, annoyed.

"That has nothing to do with it!"

"Guys, calm down," Mr Schue said.

"I don't mind singing," Blaine said. He'd never been afraid of performing in front of an audience.

"See?" Rachel said. "Go on." She looked as though she was ready to judge Blaine as harshly as possible.

Blaine had an idea. He broke into an evil grin, then whispered to Kurt.

"Yes!" Sometimes Kurt really loved his boyfriend. He stood next to Blaine, ready for the song. It probably would have been better if they'd had time to work out choreography, but he and Blaine had always had chemistry. They could pull it off.

_So she said, "What's the problem baby?"_  
><em>What's the problem I don't know<em>  
><em>Well maybe I'm in love, <em>

Blaine looked at Rachel, hoping she'd get the hint._  
><em>

_think about it every time_  
><em>I think about it, can't stop thinking 'bout it<em>

_How much longer will it take to cure this_  
><em>Just to cure it 'cause I can't ignore it if it's love<em>  
><em>Makes me wanna turn around and face me<em>  
><em>But I don't know nothing about love<em>

He was clueless, but they seemed to be making it work so far. He pulled Kurt close, as though they were dancing at a ball.

_Come on, come on_  
><em>Turn a little faster<em>

A small spin... Kurt was laughing, totally into it. He jazzed it up a little, making the others smile.

_Come on, come on_  
><em>The world will follow after<em>  
><em>Come on, come on<em>  
><em>Because everybody's after love<em>

_So I said, "I'm a snowball running"_  
><em>Running down into the spring<em>  
><em>That's coming all this love melting under<em>  
><em>Blue skies belting out sunlight, shimmering love<em>

_Well baby I surrender to the strawberry ice cream_  
><em>Never ever end of all this love<em>  
><em>Well I didn't mean to do it<em>

He moved away, as though afraid of the strength of his feelings...

_But there's no escaping your love_

Then back to Kurt, not entirely faking the inability to stay away from him.

_These lines of lightning_  
><em>Mean we're never alone<em>  
><em>Never alone, no, no<em>

_Come on, come on_  
><em>Move a little closer<em>

He put his arms around Kurt's waist.

_Come on, come on_  
><em>I want to hear you whisper<em>

Kurt moved with him, bringing his lips to Blaine's ear. "We are so awesome at this."

"You think it's making her mad?" Blaine whispered back.

"Definitely."

_Come on, come on_  
><em>Settle down inside my love<em>

_Come on, come on_  
><em>Jump a little higher<em>  
><em>Come on, come on<em>  
><em>If you feel a little lighter<em>  
><em>Come on, come on<em>  
><em>We were once upon a time in love<em>

He kept his eyes on Kurt, whose moves complemented his very well. Even though it was a cheesy song, and they were mainly doing it to prove a point, he was enjoying the performance immensely.

_We're accidentally in love_  
><em>Accidentally in love<em>  
><em>Accidentally in love<em>  
><em>Accidentally in love<em>

_Accidentally_  
><em>I'm in love, I'm in love<em>  
><em>I'm in love, I'm in love<em>  
><em>I'm in love, I'm in love<em>  
><em>Accidentally<em>  
><em>I'm in love, I'm in love<em>  
><em>I'm in love, I'm in love<em>  
><em>I'm in love, I'm in love<em>  
><em>Accidentally<em>

_Come on, come on_  
><em>Spin a little tighter<em>

Another spin...

_Come on, come on_  
><em>And the world's a little brighter<em>  
><em>Come on, come on<em>  
><em>Just get yourself inside her<em>  
><em>Love, I'm in love<em>

And they finished, Kurt leaning back into Blaine's arms dramatically.

"So, do I meet with your approval?" Blaine asked Rachel pointedly.

"I suppose."

"That was awesome, dude!" Finn shouted.

"Can I keep him?" Brittany asked. "I want another dolphin to play with."

"Well," Mr Schuester said, "I think that was phenomenal. If a little overdone."

"Says the man who has never met a Journey song he didn't force his students to perform," Santana said in irritation. "They were great."

Kurt looked at her oddly. He might be mistaken, but it seemed like she was actually being sort of nice for a change._ What is up with everyone today? First Karofsky, now Santana. _At least he could always count on Rachel to be annoying.

"I would like to officially welcome you into the New Directions," Mr Schuester said to Blaine.

"Thanks," Blaine said. "I hope I won't let you down." He and Kurt sat, still holding hands. He was really hoping that the rest of the club would accept him as one of them, because he didn't plan on leaving anytime soon.

A/N: The song is "Accidentally In Love" by Counting Crows, in case anyone didn't recognize it.

http: / www. youtube .com/ watch?v =lLa I0McuOr8


	4. Paranoia

Author's Note: I don't own Glee, unfortunately. Hope you like the chapter. Or are surprised/slightly scared. Either way. But this is what the characters have been doing in my head, and hopefully it seems in character to you guys too.

It didn't take long for Kurt to become accustomed to having Blaine at the same school as him, but sometimes he would turn to look at his boyfriend, and hardly believe this was real. This time last year, he could never have imagined being so happy.

Kurt was waiting outside the door of the French room, the first time it happened.

"Hi," Karofsky said.

He was so shocked, he didn't even manage to say anything back. Karofsky didn't seem to care, he just walked past. _What? _Kurt thought.

He saw Blaine later in the day. The two of them didn't have many subjects together, but they always sat together at lunch and met at the lockers between classes.

"You'll never guess what happened," he said to Blaine.

"What?"

"Karofsky said hi to me."

"Why?" Blaine was just as surprised as Kurt. Since the incident on the first day, Karofsky had mostly ignored them both.

"Not sure. It's interesting, though, I guess."

"Yeah..." Blaine said. _What is he doing?_ he wondered. _Trying to lull us into a false sense of security? _He tried to put it out of his mind, hoping that if he didn't worry about it, nothing bad would happen.

"How's it going?" Karofsky said the next day, when he passed Kurt at his locker.

"All right," Kurt said. "You?"

"Pretty good."

That was about as much as they interacted, at first. But over time, they began to talk about their classes, Karofsky would mention football training in passing, and even ask about Glee. Kurt would answer somewhat warily, not sure whether to trust this new side of him. But he decided not to question a good thing.

Blaine turned to Kurt, looking confused, the first time this happened when he was there. "Why does he talk to you so much?"

"I dunno. I don't mind, though. Not if it means I don't have to worry anymore."

Blaine was grateful for this too, if a little suspicious. Most of the football players had backed off, after the other guys in Glee had threatened to punch their faces in if they laid a hand on either boy. Blaine felt like he could take care of himself, but he was glad for it, if only for Kurt's sake. Still, he wondered what Karofsky's motives were. He wasn't quite as ready to accept the bully's new, improved form.

Kurt walked away, and Blaine stared after him, trying to keep his eyes from traveling down his boyfriend's back. While they rarely got physically abused, it was likely that something bad would happen if he checked Kurt out too obviously.

He looked away, and realized that he wasn't the only one watching his boyfriend. Karofsky had turned back, and was looking at Kurt with longing in his eyes.

_He... _Blaine was shocked, but it made sense, in a weird sort of way. _What am I supposed to do about that? _he wondered. _If I say anything, he'll probably beat me up. _He resolved to keep a close eye on Karofsky in the future, which he would have anyway, but for different reasons. _Who would have imagined that I'd have to protect him from **this **sort of attention? _He had come to McKinley expecting to be Kurt's knight in shining armor, though Kurt would kill him if he knew, but this hadn't really been necessary so far. Instead, he'd just enjoyed himself, not having to try very hard at school (except for French, which he was terrible at) and watching the antics of the New Directions.

A few days later, despite his resolution not to cause any trouble, Blaine couldn't take it anymore. His skin crawled whenever he saw Karofsky's eyes on Kurt, and he noticed it more and more. After a particularly blatant incident of staring, he approached the larger boy.

"What exactly do you think you're doing?" he asked quietly.

"What do you mean?" Karofsky said innocently.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"No idea, gay boy."

He tried not to scream at the hypocrisy. "Stop checking out my boyfriend," Blaine said in a low, dangerous voice.

"I'm not checking him out," Karofsky said in a voice that Blaine supposed was meant to dismiss his accusation as ridiculous. Instead, it came out shaky and scared.

"Please. You couldn't be more obvious if you tried."

Karofsky took a step forward, raising his fist threateningly. "If you tell anyone, I'll-"

Blaine raised his hands. "I'm not planning to tell anyone. I've been through your internal struggle, and I'm not going to expose you to the world." This was the truth, however much he hated Karofsky, he knew about the fear of being found out. "I do, however, want you to stay away from my boyfriend."

"We go to the same school. I can't exactly avoid him."

"Just leave him alone."

"Whatever."

Karofsky turned away, and Blaine was surprised. He'd expected to be punched in the face, at the least.

_Should I tell Kurt? _he wondered. He decided against it. Kurt probably wouldn't believe him, and Blaine didn't blame him. He wouldn't have believed it himself, if he hadn't seen it. Not because Kurt wasn't good looking, he definitely was, but because this was _Karofsky._ Not the sort of cute, openly gay guy that he got annoyed with whenever he saw one staring at Kurt in the mall or the coffee shop. He wasn't really prepared to deal with this sort of situation. So he held his tongue when Kurt and Karofsky interacted, hoping it would just go away. After a while, he decided he needed help. He didn't know most of the members of the Glee club very well yet, but Mercedes had always been nice to him, and Kurt was her closest friend.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi, Blaine." She looked around for Kurt. They were rarely apart when they could help it, but her best friend wasn't there. "What's up?"

"I need to talk to you."

Now she was curious. "What about?"

"I have a problem..."

"What kind of problem?" she asked. Why would he come to her for help? She liked Kurt's boyfriend, but she hadn't actually talked to him all that much.

"Well, you're Kurt's best friend, right?"

She was slightly insulted at the insinuation that there was any doubt. "Yes."

"Well..." He wasn't sure how to start. How do you tell someone that you're afraid the guy who threatened to kill your boyfriend now likes him, and you have no idea what to do about it? _Might as well just say it straight out. _"I think Karofsky has a crush on Kurt," he blurted out.

_"What?" _She stared at him in horror. Yes, Blaine was cute, but she might have to warn Kurt that he was totally insane.

"I know it sounds crazy."

"You'd better believe it does."

Blaine bit his lip. "He keeps staring at Kurt, and talking to him..."

"I think maybe you're being paranoid." But Blaine looked like he believed what he was saying, and she had wondered why Karofsky kept talking to Kurt, too.

"He practically admitted it when I confronted him."

"You _what?_" Definitely insane, and not in the good way. In the reckless, going-to-get-himself-killed way. "Don't you have any idea how dangerous that is?"

Blaine ran a hand through his hair. "I know, I know. But I just... it's disgusting, the way he looks at Kurt. I hate it." He sighed. "And Kurt has no idea."

She was starting to think Blaine could be right. "So what do you want me to do?"

"Just watch out for him? When I'm not there. So I know he's okay."

Mercedes nodded. She could do that, and confirm for herself whether Blaine was making this up in his head. "Of course."

"Thanks."


	5. Kilt and Tie

"Okay!" Mr Schue said over all the talking. They ignored him. "Hello?"

Kurt looked away from Blaine, who had been staring at him in a way that made his stomach twist pleasantly. Gradually, the talking died down.

Their teacher wrote a word on the board.

"Love?" Santana asked, an eyebrow raised. "Really? Haven't we done this one about a million times?"

"There are always more love songs," Finn said seriously.

"And plus, you haven't gotten a chance to sing one to Rachel since the last time you broke up and got back together," Quinn said cuttingly.

"Exactly!" Finn said, completely missing her point.

"So, come up with something to sing by the end of the week," Mr Schue told them.

Blaine raised his hand. The others had given him odd looks for this in the beginning, but he couldn't quite get rid of the habit.

"Yes?"

"Can we sing a duet?"

"If you want," the teacher replied. "You don't have to, though."

He smiled. He knew the perfect song.

That afternoon, he was in Kurt's room, trying to get up the nerve to ask him about the song. It was one of his favorites, but he wanted Kurt to sing the girl's part, and he wasn't sure how his boyfriend would react.

"Kurt?"

Kurt looked up from his homework. "Yeah?"

"Do you mind doing a duet with me?"

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "Why would I? I love singing with you."

"Yeah, but..."

"What song?"

"I don't know if you'll have heard it."

"Sing it for me, then."

"I don't think I can sing it by myself." He got up and plugged his iPod into Kurt's speakers.

Kurt just listened at first, but a smile grew on his face as he heard the lyrics. When it finished, he kissed Blaine softly. "It's perfect."

"Really?" Blaine broke into a wide grin. "You don't mind singing the girl's part?"

"Nah," Kurt said. "We might have to change a couple of the lyrics though."

"I'm glad. I love this song so much. And Kurt," he said, his voice low and sexy, "you are _definitely _not a girl."

Kurt kissed him again, a little more urgently this time.

Blaine pulled away, trying not to get distracted. "We need to practice, Kurt."

"Why are you always saying that?" Kurt complained.

"Because it's true. I mean, you may be naturally flawless, but I am not."

"Shut up," Kurt said. "False modesty is not becoming on you." He sat up reluctantly. "Fine. We'll practice."

They were the first to volunteer to sing the next day. The teacher sat back expectantly and motioned for them to begin.

It was Kurt's part first.

_Every night I walked the streets_

Kurt paced up and down at the front of the room._  
><em>

_Never dreaming what could happen_  
><em>Sad and so lonely<em>  
><em>I saw in the mirror my reflection<em>  
><em>Staring back at me<em>  
><em>I thought, will I ever find what I need?<em>

He acted like he'd just noticed Blaine, and took his boyfriends hands, ready for the next lines._  
><em>

_But I'll wear that kilt if you wear the tie_  
><em>And baby we'll dance through the night<em>

The dancing had worked for them before, and it reminded Blaine of how they'd stood up to everyone on Prom Night last year. Though he hadn't said it until a few weeks later, seeing Kurt up on the stage, facing down everyone who had humiliated him - that was the moment he knew that he was in love.

_'Cause no one's got what we've got going_  
><em>Happiness never held on to me<em>  
><em>Until you had me see<em>  
><em>That together we're just better off<em>

_Oooh  
><em>

Then Blaine's part, singing his love to Kurt. He'd always worked so much better when he had someone to focus on, someone to sing for.

_Oh my heart's been tried_  
><em>Time and again<em>  
><em>I always thought that it was me but<em>  
><em>I see now just how wrong I was<em>  
><em>No, I haven't known you for a lifetime<em>  
><em>But somehow I've never been more sure that you're for me<em>  
><em>Baby please<em>  
><em>Don't leave, just come and dance with me tonight<em>

Then both of them sang, their voices complementing each other perfectly._  
><em>

_But I'll wear that kilt if you wear the tie_  
><em>And baby we'll dance through the night<em>  
><em>'Cause no one's got what we've got going<em>  
><em>Happiness never held on to me<em>  
><em>Until you had me see<em>  
><em>That together we're just better off<em>

_Don't be cruel to me_  
><em>Oh, I've wanted more<em>  
><em>But I've been wrong before<em>

_So much learning to lose_  
><em>But you're not a day too soon<em>  
><em>So say you feel the same and<em>  
><em>We'll never be lonely anymore<em>

_But I'll wear that kilt if you wear the tie_  
><em>And baby we'll dance through the night<em>  
><em>'Cause no one's got what we've got going<em>  
><em>Happiness never held on to me<em>  
><em>Until you had me see<em>  
><em>That together we're just better off<em>

_But I'll wear that kilt if you wear the tie_  
><em>And baby we'll dance through the night<em>  
><em>'Cause no one's got what we've got going<em>  
><em>Happiness never held on to me<em>  
><em>Until you had me see<em>  
><em>That together we're just better off<em>

_We're just better off_

_I'll wear that kilt_

_And I'll wear the tie_

_And we'll just dance through the night_

_Tonight..._

_Tonight..._

_Tonight_

Rachel stood up next.

"What are you singing?" Mr Schue asked.

"'Leave Me Alone', by Pink," she announced proudly.

Blaine spotted a problem with this immediately, but held his tongue. She sang the song passionately, and he had to admit that she was an amazing singer, but he'd already known that. It was the song choice that really bugged him.

When she finished, he put his hand up.

"Yes?" Mr Schue said.

He directed his question at Rachel. "You're singing to Finn, right?"

"Of course."

Blaine looked at him, considering. From what he knew of their relationship, it wasn't usually Rachel who was complaining about her boyfriend being clingy.

Finn was beginning to look a little annoyed. "That's not right at all."

"It's a great song!"

"Yeah," Blaine said. "It really is. But it doesn't work for you."

She crossed her arms. "And I suppose you could do better."

_I really shouldn't... _he thought, but his feet had a life of their own. He stood up. "I think this one makes more sense for you." He'd expected the others to object, but they seemed to be looking forward to seeing Rachel get shown up.

Kurt put his head in his hands, but seemed to think it would be useless to try to stop him. Blaine could never resist an opportunity to show off.

Blaine tried to think of how Rachel would really feel about Finn (although that was pretty weird to consider, since Finn was Kurt's step brother), and opened his mouth to sing.

_Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah_  
><em> There's always cracks<em>  
><em> Crack of sunlight<em>  
><em> Crack in the mirror on your lips<em>  
><em> It's the moment of a sunset Friday<em>  
><em> When our conversations twist<em>  
><em> It's the fifth day of ice on a new tattoo<em>  
><em> But the ice should be on our heads<em>  
><em> We only spun the web to catch ourselves<em>  
><em> So we weren't left for dead<em>

_ And I was never looking for approval from anyone but you_  
><em> And though this journey is over I'll go back if you ask me to<em>

_ I'm not dead just floating_  
><em> Right between the ink of your tattoo<em>  
><em> In the belly of the beast we turned into<em>  
><em> I'm not scared just changing<em>  
><em> Right beyond the cigarette and the devilish smile<em>  
><em> You're my crack of sunlight<em>

_ You can do the math a thousand ways but you can't erase the facts_  
><em> That others come and others go but you always come back<em>  
><em> I'm a winter flower underground always thirsty for summer rain<em>  
><em> And just like the change of seasons<em>  
><em> I know you'll be back again<em>

_ I'm not dead just floating_  
><em> Underneath the ink of my tattoo<em>  
><em> I've tried to hide my scars from you<em>  
><em> I'm not scared just changing<em>  
><em> Right beyond the cigarette and the devilish smile<em>  
><em> You're my crack of sunlight oh<em>

_ I'm not dead just yet_  
><em> I'm not dead I'm just floating<em>  
><em> Doesn't matter where I'm going<em>  
><em> I'll find you<em>  
><em> I'm not scared at all<em>  
><em> Underneath the cuts and bruises<em>  
><em> Finally gained what no one loses<em>  
><em> I'll find you<em>  
><em> I will find you<em>

_ I'm not dead just floating_  
><em> I'm not scared just changing<em>  
><em> You're my crack of sunlight yeah <em>

The others clapped.

Finn grinned appreciatively. "See? That makes much more sense."

"I hate all of you," Rachel said, turning her back on the rest of them.

Blaine mouthed a _"sorry" _to Finn, but the football player just shrugged.

"I don't mind," Finn whispered back. "That song wasn't right at all."

So it turned out okay.

A/N: The song is "Dress and Tie" by Charlene Kaye, which I changed slightly, for obvious reasons. I love it so very much.

.com/watch?v=83fJ7hlZkpA

Also, in case anyone hasn't heard yet... they kissed! On stage! I am a very happy fangirl. ;D_  
><em>


	6. By Myself

"Hey, Blaine..." Kurt said cautiously.

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?" Kurt bit his lip. It had been his father's idea, and he was a little apprehensive about what his Dad was planning to say to Blaine.

Blaine was a little surprised. He and Kurt had been on dates, but he didn't often stay over at his boyfriend's house, and he'd never been formally asked before. "Sure."

Kurt gave a reassuring smile, not sure whether it was really for Blaine or himself.

Blaine arrived at Kurt's house around seven, dressed casually but with a little more care than usual.

Kurt looked him up and down, noting Blaine's clothes. "Really, Blaine? I thought you'd have gotten tired of blazers."

"Come on, you know you love the blazer," Blaine said flirtatiously, leaning in for a kiss.

Kurt reciprocated, leaning into Blaine, loving the way they fit together. He pulled back and smiled in spite of himself. "I really do."

They were interrupted by a cleared throat behind them. "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes," Burt said, giving Blaine a warning look.

Kurt pulled Blaine over to the couch in the living room. "I should tell you..." he said reluctantly.

"Yes?"

"I think my Dad is planning to give you the 'If you hurt my son I'll kill you,' talk."

Blaine swallowed. He was unsure whether Kurt knew about him overstepping the boundaries to talk to Burt about him, but he was pretty sure that wouldn't have really improved Burt's opinion of him. "I can deal with that," he said unconvincingly.

"Sure you can," Kurt laughed. "Don't worry, he likes you."

"Uh huh," Blaine said, trying to get rid of the image of Burt threatening him with a shotgun. "It'll be fine." He wasn't having much success. "Absolutely fine," he repeated.

"Dinner!" Carole called from the dining room.

Blaine walked in, taking in the amazing smells wafting from the food. His mother wasn't much of a cook, so he always enjoyed eating at Kurt's house. He watched Kurt's family, feeling a little sad at how relaxed they were compared to him and his parents.

Finn sat down at the table and started eating before anyone else had even gotten their food.

"Hey! You have to wait for everyone else," Carole said.

"Yeah," Kurt added. "We have a guest, Finn."

Finn looked up. "It's just Blaine." He noted Kurt's threatening look. "No offense, dude," he said apologetically to Blaine.

"None taken." Blaine actually really liked Finn, even though he really couldn't stand his girlfriend.

The rest of them took their seats, and Finn began shoveling food into his mouth again. Blaine concentrated on the delicious burritos that Carole had prepared, but was distracted by Kurt stroking his leg under the table. He turned to his boyfriend in alarm, but Kurt just raised an eyebrow, as though nothing was going on. Blaine pushed Kurt's hand off his leg, not wanting to think of the consequences if Burt noticed. Unfortunately, Kurt's dad was already wearing an expression which told him that Burt was remembering their conversation in the auto shop.

When dinner was over, Burt asked if he could talk to Blaine alone. Kurt gave Blaine a sympathetic glance, but couldn't quite suppress his smirk. Blaine shot him a look that clearly said 'I will never forgive you for this. Ever.' At least, he hoped it did. He wasn't sure if he quite pulled it off, because Kurt just looked amused and left the room.

"Sit down, Blaine," Burt said.

He sat, bracing himself for what was about to happen. "Can I just say-"

Burt held up a hand. "I'm not going to threaten you."

Blaine breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, maybe a little," Burt said, his amused expression matching the one Kurt had worn just before. "I just want to make sure that you and Kurt are..." he cleared his throat uncomfortably,"being safe."

Blaine groaned, unable to stop himself from turning red. "We're not even anywhere near that stage," he said truthfully. "And even if we were, I would never do anything that Kurt was uncomfortable with, and I always want to protect him." _Ugh, _he thought. _That probably didn't come out the way I meant it. _"I love him," he said quietly.

Burt's expression softened. "I can tell."

Blaine couldn't quite suppress his next question. "Does Kurt know about the, um, the-" he tried to think of the best way to phrase it. "-what we talked about last year?"

"No," Burt said. "And it's probably best that it stays that way. I think he might kill both of us."

"Yeah," Blaine agreed. "Thanks, sir."

"I've told you to call me Burt."

"Thanks, Burt." He left the dining room, and joined Kurt in front of the television.

"What exactly did you talk about last year?" Kurt asked.

_Oh, shit. _"Nothing," Blaine squeaked. "And you weren't supposed to listen to that!"

Kurt waved a hand dismissively. "It's obviously not nothing," he said, enjoying making his boyfriend squirm. "C'mon, tell me. It can't be that bad."

"Oh yes it can," Blaine replied, stalling for time.

"Blaine, just tell me. Or I'll start thinking it's something _really _bad, like my Dad warning you not to take advantage of me before we even started going out."

Blaine tried not to give anything away by his expression, but obviously failed.

_"Worse?" _Kurt said, horrified.

"Keep in mind that I was trying to help you..." Blaine said.

Kurt just waited, trying not to strangle Blaine when he didn't even know what had happened yet.

"Well, you know when we did Animal, and you were really worried about not seeming sexy enough?"

Kurt nodded, not really liking where this was going.

"And I was trying to give you some advice, but you wouldn't listen to me."

Kurt remembered with embarrassment how he'd pushed Blaine out of the house after their uncomfortable talk. He also suddenly recalled the awestruck expression on Blaine's face when he mentioned watching '_those _videos'. But that wasn't really important right now.

"So I went to talk to your dad."

"You WHAT?" Kurt yelled. "It's _your fault _I had to sit through that? That was the most embarrassing experience of my life!" He was breathing hard, at a loss as to why on earth Blaine would ever have thought that was a smart thing to do.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time?" Blaine said weakly.

Kurt calmed down a bit, deciding that it wasn't _so _bad. It had turned out okay in the end. He couldn't resist torturing Blaine a little bit, though. "What exactly was your motive for this little speech?"

Blaine looked confused. "I wanted to make sure you knew about that sort of stuff."

"And why was that?" Kurt asked, smirking slightly.

"So that you were safe," he said, still not understanding what Kurt was getting at.

Kurt laughed a little. "And you didn't understand how that looked to my dad?"

"Well, I realize it was a little out of bounds..."

"Blaine, you basically went to him and said, 'Could you give your son the talk, so that I can- so that he'll be ready when I decide to deflower him!'" Kurt said, trying not to completely break down in laughter.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Blaine said, appalled. "I was trying to help you!"

Kurt almost fell off the couch. "Yeah," he gasped out, "help me out of my pants!"

Burt came into the living room. "What's going on?"

"Kurt finds some really weird things amusing," Blaine said, with a pointed look at his boyfriend.

Kurt attempted to stop laughing, without much success.

Burt looked a bit concerned, but decided not to comment further. "You'll be staying on the couch, Blaine."

Blaine tried not to look disappointed. "That's fine."

"And don't stay up too late," he warned them.

"We won't," Kurt lied. He planned to tease Blaine about this _forever._

Gentle hands shook Blaine awake the next morning. "Blaine," Kurt whispered.

"'S too early to be up," Blaine murmured.

"I've got something to show you," Kurt said quietly.

He was suddenly wide awake. "What?" he said eagerly.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Nothing like that. Get dressed." Kurt left the room and waited by the door impatiently.

Blaine appeared a few minutes later. "Where are we going?" he asked curiously.

"You'll see," Kurt told him. He led Blaine to a a patch of sidewalk a few blocks away.

"This is it?" Blaine asked, confused.

"No," Kurt said. He took Blaine's hand and pulled him forward into the trees. It soon became evident that he was following what used to be a path, which had gotten very overgrown. They came out about a minute later into a beautiful clearing ringed by trees, with a small stream running through it. There was a picnic table in the middle.

"I found this right after my mom died," Kurt said softly. "I used to come here whenever I couldn't take all the people telling me it would be okay."

Blaine felt sad for the small boy staring out of Kurt's eyes.

"And later," Kurt continued, "when they called me names... when I felt like I was all alone." He was close to tears. "But Blaine... I don't want to be by myself any more."

Blaine pressed a kiss to Kurt's forehead and hugged him tightly, saying fiercely, "You'll never have to."

A/N: I realized I forgot to add an author's note last night, so here it is. First, I don't own Glee. And second, this chapter is mostly just fluff, but it sets up something important for later... ;) The next chapter will be smut-ish, so be warned if you don't really like that. (I may be biased, but the next one is actually my favorite of this story so far.) Please read and review! I'm always looking for feedback to improve my writing._  
><em>


	7. For Your Entertainment

Author's Note: So. Here is the 'entertaining' chapter. The song in this one has always fascinated me due to the multiple ways it could be taken, and I hope I used that to good effect. Please read and review!

Santana watched Blaine, who was staring at Kurt avidly, as though he was ready to get on his knees and beg. She smirked. This gave her an idea. She tapped Mercedes on the shoulder, because she was pretty sure Kurt's best friend would be down with it.

Mercedes turned around. "What do you want?"

She told the other girl her plan softly, and Mercedes rubbed her hands together in anticipation.

Rachel leaned over to them, eyes narrowed. "That's a terrible idea."

"You're just mad that he chose Kurt over you," Mercedes said. She liked Rachel, most of the time, but she had been extremely angry when the soloist had messed with her boy.

"You probably can't do it anyway," Rachel said.

"You wanna bet?" Santana said confidently.

"If you can't get it to happen by next week, you both have to give me fifty bucks."

"And if we win," Mercedes said, "you have to give each of us a fifty."

"Fine. I just made a hundred bucks," Rachel said smugly.

"Come on," Mercedes said to Santana. "We have planning to do."

Mercedes approached Blaine the next day after school. "Can I talk to you?"

"What about?"

"I want to show you something," she coaxed sweetly.

"Why...?"

"You'll like it, I promise."

He looked around for Kurt, but then he remembered that his boyfriend was working at the auto shop with his dad that day. "Okay... I don't really have anything else to do."

They took Blaine's car, with Mercedes driving. She pulled into the driveway, and Blaine was baffled.

"What could you possibly have to show me that you couldn't at school?"

"You'll see," she smiled.

Once they got to her room, Blaine was even more suspicious. Santana was there too. "What the hell? Are you kidnapping me or something?"

Mercedes gave her a warning look. "You weren't supposed to be here."

"I had to see his reaction," she explained.

"Did you at least get it ready?"

"Yup." Santana pointed to the computer. "Right there."

Blaine looked at it curiously. "What-"

Mercedes motioned to the chair. "You might want to sit down."

He sat, and she clicked play.

He was confused at first. Kurt was standing in a room, between Tina and Brittany. Then Single Ladies started playing, and Kurt began to dance. _Hips... pants... **tight **pants... _They didn't exactly leave anything to the imagination. Then Kurt slapped his butt, and Blaine lost it. He could only stare at the screen, unable to take his eyes off his boyfriend. _How could I ever have thought he wasn't sexy?  
><em>

The video ended. "Wait- How- What-" he spluttered.

"I think we broke him," Mercedes said, smiling at his reaction.

Santana appraised him. "Nah, he's not quite there yet." She clicked the next video.

Kurt stood on a stage, wearing a red checkered jacket. His hair was wild and sexy, and Blaine wondered why he didn't wear it like that all the time. _"Whether you love him,_ or capital H-I-M... _Just put your paws up..._"_ _Kurt raised his arms, while Mercedes and Tina walked onstage. _ "'Cause you were born this way, baby."_ They grabbed his jacket, and pulled. _Is that even allowed? _he wondered. _That's way too sexy to perform in school. _When he saw what the jacket said, Blaine paused the video.

"Likes boys?" He turned to Mercedes. "When was this?" He seemed to remember seeing that jacket a few days after he sang goodbye to Kurt last year.

"Um... a little after Kurt transferred?"

"So why does it say 'Likes boys'?"

Mercedes seemed to be missing the problem. "Because he does...?"

"No, he doesn't." He folded his arms angrily.

"You're his boyfriend, Blaine. Surely you've realized that he's gay by now." She was looking at him, one eyebrow raised.

Santana was trying to muffle her laughter. Obviously she had understood what he was getting at. "He's mad-" she gasped, -"because it doesn't say 'Likes Blaine!'"

"It's not funny!" he said.

"Oh, yes it is," Santana choked out. "_Someone _is a little jealous." She looked Blaine over consideringly. Maybe Blaine had a little more substance to him than she had thought.

"So what if I am?" Blaine defended himself. "There's nothing wrong with that," he said hotly.

"_Damn," _Santana laughed. "I knew this would be funny, but I didn't realize you'd be _that_ entertaining. Thanks," she said appreciatively.

"Well, I'm glad _you _find it amusing," he said.

"Oh, I do."

"It was an assignment where we had to wear shirts with things that we were insecure about, or that people had teased us about in the past," Mercedes explained. "Would you rather he was insecure about liking you?"

"Oh. No. I guess not." He looked at Santana in annoyance. "You could have explained that."

"You were funny to watch."

"Hmph." He clicked play on the video again.

Kurt moved in time with the girls, then walked up the steps, turning back a couple of times as though interacting with an audience of swooning fans. The other people on the stage were probably dancing too, but Blaine only had eyes for Kurt. His boyfriend started down the steps again, and threw his jacket into the crowd. _Fuck, _Blaine thought. _Are you trying to torture me? _Those hips, the hair... Kurt slid his hand downwards and Blaine gasped, not even noticing Santana's giggle at his expense. _Not fair._ He continued to watch every minute detail of Kurt's movements, cursing the camera person for not focusing on his boyfriend the whole time.

"Guh," was all he could say when it was over.

"So you liked it?" Santana asked.

"Bu- bu- but-" he looked at her helplessly. "Whu- why are you doing this?"

She shrugged. "I torture people for fun."

"And you?" he asked Mercedes.

"I felt sorry for you, staring at Kurt in practice every day, and not doing anything about it."

Had he been that obvious? He usually prided himself on being fairly discreet. "Shit, do you think he noticed?"

"No, that boy is just as much of an idiot as you are."

"Hey!"

Mercedes smiled at him apologetically. "Sorry, but it's true. You should get a move on, you know."

"Kurt doesn't like doing that sort of thing, though."

"Trust me, he does," Mercedes said. She had heard in infinitesimal detail exactly how Kurt felt whenever Blaine kissed him, or even just smiled at him. "He's just too embarrassed to tell you."

"Why would he be embarrassed? Surely he knows that I want him..."

"He's bad at picking up on that sort of thing."

Blaine considered this. "Thanks, I guess," he said.

Santana winked at him. "You're very welcome."

He left the house, mulling over what he'd witnessed. Santana and Mercedes had given him a lot to think about.

A few more days had passed, and Blaine still hadn't done anything about his insane attraction to Kurt. Santana was getting impatient. Time to kick things up a notch.

"So, any suggestions?" Mr Schuester asked, standing in front of the white board.

She raised her hand.

"Santana?"

"I think we should do 'For Your Entertainment,' by Adam Lambert.

"I don't know that one," the teacher said. "Do you want to sing it to us?"

"No... I think Kurt should perform it for the rest of us. It'll be fun to watch," she said, her tone a little bit suggestive. Blaine looked at her in alarm. He'd underestimated how cunning Santana could be. She gave him a devil's smile. If this didn't do it, nothing would.

"What?" Kurt asked. "Why me?"

"You know it, right?"

"Yeah, of course." In fact, he had watched the video over and over, wishing he could sing and dance like that.

"So? Show it to us," she challenged him.

He looked at her suspiciously, suspecting an ulterior motive. "Okay..."

Kurt walked to the front of the room, going over the moves in his head. Blaine braced himself, knowing this wouldn't be easy. _"Fuck you," _he mouthed to Santana.

She wiggled her fingers at him.

_So hot out of the box_  
><em>Can we pick up the pace<em>  
><em>Turn it up, heat it up<em>  
><em>I need to be entertained<em>  
><em>Push the limit, are you with it?<em>  
><em>Baby don't be afraid<em>  
><em>I'mma hurt you real good baby<em>

_Fuck, _Blaine thought. This was even worse than he'd expected._  
><em>

_Let's go, it's my show, baby, do what I say_  
><em>Don't trip off the glitz that I'm gonna display<em>  
><em>I told you, I'mma hold ya down until you're amazed<em>  
><em>Give it to ya til you're screamin' my name<em>

Kurt was moving in a way that was totally inappropriate for school, singing every word right to him. _Shit, _he thought. _This is better than the videos. Or worse. _He couldn't make up his mind._  
><em>

_No escaping when I start_  
><em>Once I'm in I own your heart<em>  
><em>There's no way you'll ring the alarm<em>  
><em>So hold on until it's over<em>

_Oh!_  
><em>Do you know what you got into<em>  
><em>Can you handle what I'm 'bout to do<em>  
><em>'Cause it's about to get rough for you<em>  
><em>I'm here for your entertainment<em>

Oh, how he wished that were true. If Kurt did the things he was describing, Blaine was fairly certain he'd be willing to sign over his soul._  
><em>

_Oh!_  
><em>I bet you thought that I was soft and sweet<em>  
><em>You thought an angel swept you off your feet<em>

_Pretty much, _he thought. _Damn, Santana's good. _The song choice was about as torturous as he could imagine.

_But I'm about to turn up the heat_  
><em>I'm here for your entertainment<em>

_It's all right_  
><em>You'll be fine<em>  
><em>Baby I'm in control<em>  
><em>Take the pain<em>  
><em>Take the pleasure<em>  
><em>I'm the master of both<em>  
><em>Close your eyes, not your mind<em>  
><em>Let me into your soul<em>  
><em>I'mma work it 'til your totally blown<em>

_Oh, shit. _Kurt was looking at his lap when he said that, and Blaine could not be held responsible for what this did to him. _Fuck you, _he thought, not entirely sure who he was talking to now._  
><em>

_No escaping when I start_  
><em>Once I'm in I own your heart<em>  
><em>There's no way you'll ring the alarm<em>  
><em>So hold on until it's over<em>

_Oh!_  
><em>Do you know what you got into<em>  
><em>Can you handle what I'm 'bout to do<em>  
><em>'Cause it's about to get rough for you<em>  
><em>I'm here for your entertainment<em>

_Oh I bet you thought that I was soft and sweet_  
><em>You thought an angel swept you off your feet<em>  
><em>But I'm about to turn up the heat<em>  
><em>I'm here for your entertainment<em>

_Oh_  
><em>Do you like what you see?<em>

He nodded decisively._  
><em>

_Whoa_  
><em>Let me entertain ya 'til you scream<em>

_Yes, _he thought. _Please. _He was past caring what the rest of them thought of him by now._  
><em>

_Oh!_  
><em>Do you know what you got into<em>  
><em>Can you handle what I'm about to do<em>  
><em>'Cause it's about to get rough for you<em>  
><em>I'm here for your entertainment<em>

_Oh!_  
><em>I bet you thought that I was soft and sweet<em>  
><em>You thought an angel swept you off your feet<em>  
><em>But I'm about to turn up the heat<em>  
><em>I'm here for your entertainment<em>

The entire Glee club was staring at him now, except for Mr Schue, who was looking back and forth between Kurt and Santana in horror. "That is not appropriate for class!" he said loudly. "We are absolutely _not _going to perform that. Ever."

Santana shrugged, not really caring. She'd gotten what she wanted. "Sorry. I thought it was a good song."

The teacher shook his head. "Sit down," he told Kurt.

Kurt took his seat, watching Blaine in amusement. Blaine turned red. He glared at Santana, and she just smirked, which seemed to be her response to almost everything.

The bell rang, and they took their bags and left. When they got to his car, Blaine slumped in his seat, unsure if he'd ever be able to face any of them again. "God, that was so embarrassing."

Kurt was still watching him, a small smile playing around his lips. "You seemed to like the performance."

"Shut up," Blaine groaned. "Why did you go along with it? Surely you knew what would happen."

"Actually, I didn't," Kurt told him. "No one's _ever _responded like that to one of my performances."

"What?" Blaine said. "That's impossible."

"Despite what you seem to think, no one else finds me remotely attractive."

Blaine just looked at him.

"So, you really liked it, huh?" Kurt said.

_"Yes," _Blaine said incredulously. "That wasn't obvious? And just so you know, if you ever sing that sing that song if front of anyone but me, ever again, I will not be responsible for the consequences."

Kurt thought about this. "That seems fair. It was rather cruel to make you go through that. In fact, I think you deserve a little reward."

Blaine sat up. "What kind of reward?"

Kurt kissed him. "This kind."

And _whoa._ It was totally worth it.

A/N: So. Not strictly smut, but hopefully you enjoyed it anyway. ;) I don't own the song, obviously.

http: /www .youtube. com/ watch? v=MHhuE KyKgeI


	8. Payback

A/N: Here's the aftermath of the events in 'For Your Entertainment'. I do not own Glee, which I would have thought was fairly obvious by now. Please read and review. :D Also, enjoy this last cheerful chapter, it gets pretty angsty after this for a while.**  
><strong>

Blaine stood at his locker, trying to recall what classes he had that day. Normally he was good at remembering that sort of thing, but his mind had been wiped clean of everything by what he had done with Kurt the previous afternoon.

"Hey, sex toy," a voice said from behind him._ Kurt? _he thought. That wasn't the sort of thing Kurt would say, but he couldn't think of anyone else who would have the right to say that. He turned around to face the speaker.

"Santana!"

"So, did you get some?" she asked.

He blushed. They hadn't gone _that _far, but farther than they had gone before. "Thanks to you," he said.

"Hot," she said, winking at him, then walked away, looking pleased with herself.

Kurt hadn't been able to stop smiling all morning. He leaned against the wall, waiting for the teacher to open the door to his Calculus class.

Karofsky arrived a few minutes later, smiling uncharacteristically. Kurt had decided he must be trying to make up for the way he treated him last year.

"Hey, Hummel."

"Hi."

Karofsky looked down awkwardly. "So... I heard prep boy had some... problems in Glee club yesterday."

Kurt turned pink. Had it gone around the school that fast? Blaine was going to be mortified. "What business is it of yours?"

"I just thought it was funny."

"Who told you?" Kurt asked. He was going to personally make sure they suffered a horrible death, or at least a maiming.

"Santana. She found it almost as funny as I did."

Kurt narrowed his eyes. He was going to kill her.

He was distracted all through Calculus, thinking of the myriad ways that he could dismember Santana, so he was disappointed when it took him at least ten minutes to find her.

"Hey," she said, smiling at him in a way that he thought was supposed to be friendly.

"I'm going to murder you," he growled.

"I probably deserve it, but why?" she asked cheerfully.

"You told _Karofsky_ about what happened with Blaine yesterday."

"You have no one to blame but yourself for that."

And now he remembered that the whole song which had caused the incident was her fault too. "I am actually going to kill you."

"You got something out of it, though, right?" she said, smirking knowingly.

_How does she know about that? _"That is none of your business."

"I'm right," she said confidently.

"If you tell _anyone _else, expect to die a painful death." Turns out, he didn't really have the stomach for killing, as much as he would like to right now.

"There's not really anyone else to tell," she shrugged.

Santana had just replaced Rachel at the top of his list of people that annoyed the hell out of him.

Later that day, Santana walked into Glee, anticipating the practice much more than usual. She spotted Rachel immediately, who was early as usual, but waited for Mercedes to come in. "Time to shake her down," she reminded the other girl.

Mercedes seemed excited, but also a little guilty. "I still feel bad for what happened to Blaine."

"Why? It was hilarious."

"Yeah, but Kurt would kill me if he knew."

"He tried to kill me earlier," Santana said nonchalantly.

"If you tell him I was involved..."

"Save your useless threats." Santana walked over to Rachel. "Hey Berry, pay up."

The shorter girl looked angry. "How do you know anything even happened?"

"Because I asked the Hobbit," Santana said smugly.

Mercedes looked confused. "Wait, I thought Rachel was the Hobbit."

"No, she's the Gremlin."

"Oh..." Mercedes focused on Rachel again. "Come on, we won fair and square. Hand over the money."

Rachel reached into her pocket and pulled out two fifties. "I'll get you back for this somehow."

"You can try," Santana said. "I don't think there's really anything you can do that will affect me."

"I'll think of something," Rachel replied. "And you're going to wish you never came up with that idea."

Santana rolled her eyes. Her idea had been far too entertaining to ever regret.

Blaine was sitting at their picnic table, his eyes closed, just enjoying the sunshine. He was waiting for Kurt, who had been kept late at the auto shop. A finger stroked his cheek, and he hummed happily. "Hi, Kurt."

"I'm not Kurt," said an unwelcome voice. His eyes flew open to Rachel's face.

"Aaah! How did you find me?" he asked. A scarier thought occurred to him. "_Why _did you find me?"

"I followed you because I need to talk to you."

The fact that Rachel knew about his and Kurt's special place was slightly disturbing. "What about?" he asked warily.

"An evil plan that was hatched by some of your fellow Glee clubbers."

"Which concerns me how...?"

"It involves you."

He had no idea what she was talking about, but knowing Rachel, it wasn't good. She seemed to be enjoying keeping him in suspense. "Okay..." He looked at her expectantly, hoping she would get to the point. Of course, this being Rachel, the story had to be as complicated and self-aggrandizing as possible.

"Well, it started a few days ago. I was sitting in the choir room, minding my own business, when I heard these two plotting."

"Who?"

She held up a finger. "I'm getting to that."

He was feeling impatient, but guessed that she would only go slower with more interruptions.

"They were talking about you," she paused for effect, "and making some rather rude comments about how you seemed to be focusing on my competition during all of our performances."

He was pretty sure she meant Kurt. "So? He is my boyfriend."

She looked annoyed. "Yes. I'm aware of that. Though how someone as good looking as you can be into him-"

He was _really _getting tired of Rachel. "Just accept that I am and get to the point of this story."

_"Anyway," _she said pointedly. "They were plotting to get you to... proposition said competition."

He relaxed. "I already know about that."

She looked surprised. "You do?"

"Yeah. Mercedes and Santana told me. I don't mind."

"Did they tell you about the bet?"

"Bet?" This he had not heard about.

"They bet me a hundred dollars that they could manipulate you into making sure you and Kurt would," she cleared her throat, "become closer within the week."

Blaine was fuming. Mercedes had _bet _on him? Santana he'd expect, but _Mercedes? _Kurt's best friend? "Thank you for telling me, Rachel," he said stiffly.

She seemed happy at his reaction. "So you'll get the money back for me?"

"WHAT?" he shouted. "They _bet _on me and Kurt, you're worried about your _money?" _Rachel was probably the most annoying person he had ever met, including the boy who'd asked Kurt out at the coffee shop a few days ago. "Who suggested it?" he asked acidly. "Let me guess, Santana? She doesn't mind manipulating people for her own benefit. I should have _known _they weren't really trying to help me out..."

"Oh, no, I'm the one who bet them that they wouldn't get it to happen by next week," she said proudly.

"I don't know if anyone's ever told you this, Rachel, but you are the most-"

"Yes?" she said excitedly.

"-disgusting, annoying, _petty _girl I have ever met. In fact, let's not even limit it to girls. How can anyone _stand _to be around you?" Normally, he was a very polite person. He really was. But this was just out of line.

"So you're not going to get me the money back?"

"Aaaaaaaargh!" he yelled, just as Kurt came into the clearing.

"What's going on?" Kurt said, looking from Blaine to Rachel in confusion.

"Rachel, here, made a bet on whether we would do it by next week," Blaine said, not bothering to keep the disgust out of his voice.

Shock and horror spread across Kurt's face. "You _what?"_

Blaine noticed that his boyfriend didn't bother to deny it.

"Well, I-" She seemed taken aback at how angry they both were.

"Get out of my sight," Kurt said. It turned out that no matter how much of a bitch Santana could be, Rachel would always piss him off more. She turned on her heel and walked out of the clearing.

Kurt sat down with a sigh. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?"

"Well, I knew she was a horrible person, but I didn't know she was quite _that _bad. I could quite happily murder her right now, if I wasn't against violence towards the socially inept," he said grimly.

Kurt seemed angrier than Blaine had ever seen him, even the time that he himself had kissed Rachel.

"Do you know who she made the bet with?" Kurt asked, his expression threatening death for the other perpetrators.

Blaine decided against telling him. "Nope," he lied innocently. He didn't want to have the responsibility for multiple murders on his conscience.

Kurt tapped his fingers impatiently, sensing that Blaine wasn't telling the truth, then decided to let it go. He didn't want to go to jail, and besides, if he killed whoever it was, they'd be short a few members for Sectionals. So it wasn't really worth it. Instead, he kissed Blaine on the cheek, hoping they could continue their activities from yesterday.

Blaine smiled. He didn't mind at all.


	9. Double Date

Author's Note: I'm going on a trip to the States for the month, so I most likely won't be able to update as much. As always, I don't own Glee, or the characters. Only the plot of this story. ;) Love you guys, and thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed so far. I'm always open to prompts, if you want me to write anything in particular. Please read and review! Your feedback gives the motivation to keep writing. ;D

Mercedes had decided that interfering (at least, when she did it) was a very good thing. She was actually rather pleased with the way the plan she had made with Santana had turned out. No one had been murdered, anyway. She knew that Kurt had been a bit annoyed with her for not telling him that she was going out with Sam, so she decided to make it up to him.

"Hey, Kurt?" she said in History. It was one of her favorite subjects, only made better by the fact that she could gossip with Kurt the whole time, and copy off his excellent notes when she felt like it.

"Yup," Kurt said, not looking up from his doodle of the Treaty of Versaille.

"Do you want to go on a date with me and Sam?"

Kurt tried not to groan. He would never understand why people invited more than one person on a date. "Wouldn't it be a bit awkward with just the three of us?"

"Blaine's invited too," she said, wondering why Kurt hadn't assumed that in the first place.

"Oh!" He kicked himself mentally. "Of course!"

"Tomorrow night at seven? If Blaine can come," she added.

"I'm sure he can," Kurt said. In fact, he would do everything in his power to ensure that Blaine could make it.

At lunch, he told Blaine of Mercedes' invitation. "You can come, right?"

"Even if I wasn't free, I'd never miss a chance to hang out with Mercedes."

Kurt pouted. "You like her better than me."

"I'm sorry, Kurt," Blaine said emotionally. "I'm leaving you for your best friend who is happily dating Sam and also a girl." He turned away, a hand to his forehead as though he might faint from the drama of it all. Then he looked back at Kurt, who had raised an eyebrow skeptically. "No, no, I can't do it. I can't resist your powers of persuasion." He clasped his hands over his heart. "You have too much of a hold over me, Kurt."

"You're an idiot," Kurt told him.

"You love me," Blaine assured him in return.

"Of course I do," Kurt sighed.

Blaine picked Kurt up at his house the next evening. "You ready?" he asked his boyfriend, whose fashion sense was impeccable as usual.

"Is my hair okay?" Kurt asked, trying to examine his reflection in the window.

"It's fine," Blaine told him. "Although..."

"What?" Kurt asked, running his hands over his head critically. "What's wrong?"

"Why don't you wear it like you did during 'Born This Way'?" Blaine asked, remembering how sexy Kurt had looked with the wild hairstyle.

"How did you know about that?" Kurt asked suspiciously.

_Oh, shit. _"Um..." Blaine tried not to look embarrassed, while quickly thinking up a lie. "I searched you on Youtube?"

"Oh, no," Kurt groaned. "Some of that stuff is mortifying."

"It looked good to me," Blaine said truthfully. Really good, in fact.

"Uh, huh," Kurt said doubtfully. Blaine was obviously lying to spare his feelings.

"Really, really good," Blaine said, reassuring him while attempting to avoid letting on _exactly _how good it had been.

Kurt decided to accept this. "We should get going."

They met Sam and Mercedes at Breadstix. Both of them looked very nice. Obviously Mercedes had been helping him with the clothing issue.

"Is that my tie?" Kurt asked.

Sam blushed. "I thought you wouldn't notice."

"I'd never forget anything that I once owned, Sam."

Blaine gave Sam a sympathetic look, even though it had been naive to assume that Kurt would overlook the fact that he was wearing Kurt's old tie.

Their table was next to the window, and they watched the sunset while they waited for their food to arrive. Kurt and Mercedes chatted about school, leaving Blaine to make conversation with Sam.

"So... how's football?" he asked awkwardly.

"It's cool," Sam shrugged. "Karofsky's not quite as much of an asshole as he used to be."

"Really?" Blaine said. He hadn't been aware of an improvement in Karofsky's behavior, aside from not pushing Kurt around anymore, but he knew the real reason for that.

"Yeah. Some of the guys are giving him a hard time, though."

Kurt and Mercedes looked over at them.

"What have they done to Dave?" Kurt asked.

_Dave? _Blaine thought. _Where did that come from?_ He was also slightly disturbed by the real concern in Kurt's voice.

"Just insulting him," Sam said. "Calling him-" he hesitated, not wanting to say the word in front of Blaine and Kurt, "-names."

"Maybe they've guessed," Kurt breathed.

"Guessed what?" Mercedes asked curiously. Then she remembered what Blaine had told her a few weeks ago, and felt guilty for not keeping as much of a watch over Kurt as she'd said she would. She'd tried at first, but hadn't noticed anything in particular, and had slowly forgotten about Blaine's suspicions.

"Nothing," Kurt said, trying to cover his slip.

"Kurt. Whatever it is, you can tell me."

He looked around to make sure no one was listening into their conversation. "Dave's gay," he said quietly.

Mercedes was shocked. Kurt knew? Blaine had told her that Karofsky had a crush on Kurt, but he hadn't mentioned that the former bully was actually gay, so she'd dismissed his concerns. Maybe there was more to the story than she'd thought.

"How do you know that?" she asked.

Kurt flinched.

Mercedes continued to look at him questioningly, while Blaine motioned for her to shut up. Obviously, there was something going on here. "You can tell me," she said softly. What could be so bad that Kurt wouldn't want to tell her about it?

"He kissed me," Kurt whispered.

She put a hand to her mouth. She'd had no idea.

"When was that?" Sam asked, looking murderous.

"Last year," Kurt said, shuddering with horror. He was friends with Dave now, but when he thought of what had happened in the locker room he only recalled the bully who had stolen his first kiss.

"That's why he transferred," Blaine said, feeling horrible that his innocent question had provoked the memory Kurt's ordeal.

"I'm so sorry," Mercedes said. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I-" he looked at Blaine wildly, asking for help. "I didn't-"

Blaine covered Kurt's hand with his own. "He couldn't."

"Of course he could!" Mercedes cried. "I'm his best friend!" Why hadn't Kurt confided in her? Didn't he trust her?

"He didn't tell anyone," Blaine said. "Not even his Dad."

"So how do you know about it?" Mercedes asked him accusingly.

"Well... he did tell me." He remembered Kurt's voice, crying on the phone. His anger at not being there, at his horrible advice, but most of all, his hatred for Karofsky, who'd damaged his friend almost beyond repair. _What does Kurt see in him? _he wondered, not for the first time. _How can he even stand to look at him?_

Mercedes interrupted his reverie. "He told you. But not me," she said, the betrayal clear in her voice.

Kurt was looking guilty now. He'd never meant to hurt Mercedes. "I'm sorry," he told her quietly.

Blaine felt another flash of anger. Kurt should never be made to feel like that. "Can I talk to you?" he asked Mercedes icily. "Alone?"

They walked across the room, out of earshot.

"How could you do that?" Blaine said, keeping his voice quiet, but clearly communicating his frustration.

"What did _I _do?" she asked. "I'm his best friend! He should have told me!" She looked away, staring off at the window. "I could have helped," she said sadly, haunted by the memory of how broken Kurt had been, and wishing that she could have done something to make it better.

"He felt alone," Blaine told her. "No one understood what he was going through, most of you didn't even notice anything was wrong."

"I noticed," she said. But it was true that she had never guessed how bad it was until she learned that Karofsky had threatened to kill Kurt.

"I know. You really are his best friend. But I had stuff like that happen to me..." he trailed off, almost feeling the bruises from the boys who'd kicked him until he bled. "He needed to talk to someone who'd been through that."

She nodded. "I didn't realize... I thought he didn't trust me or something."

Blaine touched her arm sympathetically. "He loves you. Just... apologize to him, okay? He doesn't need this, too."

"Of course."

She returned to the table, and Blaine followed. He sat next to Kurt, who was determinedly not looking at him. But Blaine noticed the tear trickling down his cheek. He took Kurt's hand and squeezed it. _Funny, _he thought, _how the smallest touch can have so much meaning._

"I'm sorry," Mercedes told Kurt.

"Not your fault," he said.

"I know... but I should have done more. No matter what happens, you can always tell me. You know that, boo?" She smiled reassuringly.

"Thanks," he said, giving a weak smile back. Kurt leaned his head on Blaine's shoulder, wishing he'd never said anything. But Blaine stroked his hair, and he felt a little better. _This stops now, _he told himself. So he sat up, appearing cheerful, and finished the evening as though nothing had ever happened.


	10. Nightmares

**Author's Note: This is possibly the angstiest chapter I've ever posted, so be warned. There's a little fluff, though. ;) I don't own Glee, as always. **

**Also, I'm in San Francisco at the moment, and I think it may be my favorite city ever... even if I didn't see Darren. (Not that I was excited about that possibility. Nope. Not me. Is it bad that I have a boyfriend but still really want to meet Darren? I feel guilty about that. Excuse my internal argument. This is how I think, but thankfully my writing is not quite this confusing. Is it? Tell me in the comments.) **

**On that note, please read and review. I'll see if I can write something as a prize for the person who guesses what happens to cause problems for these guys two chapters on... It's most likely not all that hard to work out. I'll give you a hint: You guys will most likely hate me for it, but it has to happen for the story... Ah, the writing goddess is a cruel mistress. Don't worry! Everything will be explained. You might have to wait a while for the prize, unfortunately, because as I mentioned, I'm in the States. The rest of this story is written though, so I should still be able to update regularly. **

**Wow. Long author's note. Long chapter. Have fun reading, and please don't hate me too much. Please? Even if you do, review. Hey! That rhymed. Like I said, ignore me. I'm in a weird mood.**

The nightmares had started again. Blaine hadn't had them for months, but now they attacked him, more forceful than ever, with new incarnations to send him gasping for air in the darkness, and play across his eyelids when he closed them for the night.

_He whimpered, as the next hit came, this time on his back. Why did they hate him so much? He and Daniel weren't even going out. It was just as friends... Another kick, and with it, a crack from his chest. He thought it might have broken a rib. "Stop..." he moaned, beyond caring about his dignity. At first, he'd tried not to cry out, but it was useless. The pain just kept coming. "Please..." He turned his head slightly, and reached out for Daniel. "I'm sorry," he tried to tell his friend, but Daniel couldn't hear him. The final kick came, and Blaine blacked out._

He woke up, trying to erase the pain from his mind. Daniel had hated him after that, and he'd lost the only friend who understood what he was going through. That was one of the reasons he'd been so sympathetic to Kurt from the beginning. He knew what it was like to be alone. He stared at the ceiling, eyes wide open, but eventually slipped back into sleep.

_Blaine ran towards the locker room. This time he'd save Kurt. He knew, in the way that you do in dreams, that this had happened before. And every time, he'd been unable to stop it. Still he hoped that this time would be different. He skidded outside the door, and knew that once again, he was too late. He stood still, watching as Karofsky took the kiss from Kurt. His Kurt. And Blaine did nothing. Because he was a coward, frozen by fear._

That was the same dream as the recurring nightmare he'd had soon after he met Kurt, after learning the consequences of his horrible advice. But this time he noticed something that hadn't registered before. From the very beginning, in that dream, he'd thought of Kurt as his. He closed his eyes, comforted by the thought.

_He stood outside the locker room, more determined than ever to save Kurt. He can't touch us, remember? Or what we have. Kurt's words, his bravery, gave Blaine strength. This time, he heard Kurt's voice, and was heartened. **I can save him. I know I can.** He took a step forward, but it wasn't the same, terrible familiar scene. It wasn't a wrenching, tearing ordeal. It was Kurt, and Karofsky, kissing. **No... **Kurt's hand reached up to touch Karofsky's cheek, the same way he'd done the first time he and Blaine kissed, and many times since. Blaine tried to scream a denial, but nothing came out. **How could you do this to me? **He wished, desperately, to wake up, but there was nothing he could do except watch Kurt betray him._

The tears ran down his cheeks, sobs shaking through him. It was worse, a thousand times worse, than seeing what had already happened. "I thought you loved me!" he cried. "Please don't leave me," he whispered despairingly. "I can't survive without you."

At school the next day, Kurt could see that Blaine hadn't slept peacefully. "Are you okay?" he asked, putting an arm around his boyfriend.

Blaine just stared back, haunted by the images that had tortured him through the night.

"What's wrong?" Kurt said, really worried now. "Did something happen last night?"

Blaine shook his head, not wanting to concern Kurt. "I'm fine."

"You're obviously not fine." He led Blaine to one of the benches outside the school, and leaned Blaine's head against his chest. "Come on. If you don't tell me what's wrong, I can't fix it." They had about ten minutes before class, so it was safe to talk.

Blaine melted into Kurt's arms. "You can't fix it..."

"Of course I can," Kurt said confidently.

"It's the nightmares," Blaine whispered.

Kurt knew about nightmares. The worst moments of his life, playing over and over, just so he could relive them in horrifying detail. "What nightmares?" he asked harshly.

Blaine swallowed. "Do you have anything, that if you could go back and change, you would do it in a second?"

"Yes," Kurt said without hesitation.

"Those are my nightmares."

"Can you tell me about them?" Kurt asked gently. "Maybe that would help." He stroked Blaine's head, trying to comfort him.

"In the first one, I'm back at my old school, on the ground, and they're kicking us..." he shuddered, feeling his ribs crack again.

When they'd first met, Blaine had seemed invincible, perfect. Kurt had thought that nothing Blaine had gone through could have been as bad as his own experiences, because how could you survive anything worse? Blaine had seemed so strong, but now Kurt knew that his boyfriend was stronger. "It's okay. You'll never have to go through that again." Kurt hugged him tighter. "I won't let them hurt you."

Blaine almost smiled. He did feel a little better.

"And the second one?" Kurt asked. He seemed to be making an impression, at least.

This one was more painful. "I try to save you..." Blaine whispered. "But I'm too late."

Kurt's heart broke for him. "You did save me," he told Blaine. "We're here now, aren't we?"

Blaine didn't even seem to hear him. "I just have to watch..."

"I'm sorry," Kurt said.

"Don't be sorry," Blaine told him. "_You _didn't do anything." At least, that's what he kept trying to tell himself. But the vivid dream of Kurt and Karofsky together kept breaking in.

"Oh, Blaine," Kurt said. "Can't I do _anything _to help?_"_

Blaine had a thought, but it was ridiculous. He shook it away, realizing as he did so that he really wanted this. "My parents are out tonight..." They often went away during the school year, and left him alone. "You could come over." He saw Kurt's look of surprise and apprehension, and hastened to explain himself. "Not- not to do anything. Just to stay with me."

Kurt's expression softened. "I'll ask." To his surprise, when he asked his Dad if he could stay the night at Blaine's, Burt didn't take a lot of convincing.

"I trust you," he said. "And Blaine's a good kid."

"Thanks, Dad." He hugged his father, truly grateful. "I love you, you know that?"

Burt ruffled his hair, even though Kurt hated it when he did that. "Love you too, kid."

Blaine drove them to his house around five. He opened the door of the empty house for Kurt, and Kurt stared around at the mansion. Actually, it wasn't really a mansion, but the house was way bigger than any Kurt had ever lived in. It was easy to see how Blaine's parents had afforded Dalton. "Nice place," was all Kurt said.

"Thanks," Blaine said, but he was a little embarrassed. "I like yours better, though."

"We don't have a pool in the back yard," Kurt said, trying not to sound jealous.

"True... but you have a family who actually likes to be around you," Blaine said, a little bitterly.

"Sorry," Kurt said. "I didn't mean-"

"I know." Blaine sighed. "I shouldn't have said that."

Kurt touched his arm comfortingly. "Don't worry about it."

"So, what do you want to do?" Blaine asked, covering up their moment of awkwardness. "We could go to the basement and play air hockey," he suggested brightly.

"You have air hockey?" Okay, now Kurt was really jealous. "Yes!"

Blaine didn't mention that he'd never actually used it, not having any siblings to play with him. Well, there was that one time that David and Wes had come over, but his friends had been uncomfortable with the awkwardness that surrounded his family. So he hadn't invited them over again. He'd gone to their houses instead.

Besides the air hockey table, the basement contained a pool table and an old Pac Man game.

"You have Pac Man?" Kurt asked in awe.

"Yeah... I used to play it a lot when I was younger."

Kurt went over and stared at the old machine. "That is so _awesome."_

"Thanks," Blaine laughed. "So. Air hockey?"

"Yeah," Kurt said, as though in a trance. He shook his head, mentally preparing himself. "You're going down, Anderson."

Blaine smirked. "That's what-"

"Shut up." Kurt stood on one side of the table, and Blaine hit the puck towards him.

Kurt hit it back, and scored a point. Blaine blinked. He'd be ready next time. He tried again, and the same thing happened. "Not fair..."

"Why not?"

"You- you just="

Kurt smiled at him innocently. He hadn't bothered to tell Blaine that he was awesome at air hockey. His dad used to take him to an arcade when he was younger, and they'd played it a lot. "Are you giving up?"

"No." Blaine readied himself, determined to score a point. Kurt gave him an easy save, and Blaine smiled, having managed to at least hit it back. Then Kurt hit in into his goal again.

"How are you doing that?"

"It's not that hard. You need to pay more attention."

"I am!"

Kurt went a little easier on him after that, but still won by seven points.

"I hate you," Blaine said.

"No you don't," Kurt said smugly.

"Hmph."

They went back upstairs. Blaine didn't really feel like playing air hockey any more, since Kurt had won so easily. Blaine cooked dinner, and they watched the Lion King while eating spaghetti.

"This is incredibly cliche, you realize," Kurt said.

"Not if we're watching Disney movies while we eat."

"I'll give you that."

They went through the Lion King, Aladdin, and the Little Mermaid. When Prince Eric came on screen, Kurt's mouth fell open. "Oh. My. God."

"What?"

_"__You're Prince Eric," _Kurt said in shock.

"What?" Blaine said again. "Why?"

"He looks just like you!"

Blaine squinted. "No he doesn't..."

Kurt had a strange smile on his face.

"Why are you looking like that?" Blaine asked suspiciously.

"If you're Eric, I get to be Ariel," Kurt said dreamily.

Blaine looked at him, amused. "But then you wouldn't be able to sing!" he cried.

"Damn," Kurt said, his fantasy ruined. "Fine. He still looks like you, though."

"If you say so."

When the movie finished, they went upstairs to Blaine's room.

Kurt bit his lip. "Um... where do I sleep?"

"In the bed," Blaine said, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"So where do you sleep?"

"Oh." Blaine turned red. "In the bed too?" His voice rose until it became a squeak.

"Are you okay with that?"

"Uh huh. Yep. Fine."

"If you're not, that's okay." He'd never expected Blaine to be more embarrassed about this than he was. "I mean, we haven't really done this before..."

"No. No, it's fine." Blaine looked very uncomfortable.

Kurt laughed. "I can sleep on the floor if you want."

"No!"

"Okay..." Kurt left to get changed into his pajamas and get ready for bed. When he came back, Blaine was sitting on the bed awkwardly.

"Blaine. This really isn't a big deal. We slept in the same room over the summer, remember?"

"Yeah. I know..." Blaine sighed. He was being an idiot. "I just don't want to do anything you're not comfortable with."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "I'm not really the one who has a problem with this."

Blaine turned off the light, and they both got under the covers, reaching an unspoken agreement not to discuss the matter further.

Kurt stared at the ceiling in silence for a while, pondering the differences between his and Blaine's families. Blaine's parents had a lot of money, but he wasn't comfortable around them, and they often left him alone for long periods of time. It made Kurt sad for his boyfriend, and he resolved to invite Blaine over to his house more often. He opened his mouth to say something, but Blaine seemed to have fallen asleep. His eyes started to close...

"Kurt."

His eyes flew open. "Yeah?"

"Kurt..." Blaine moaned, almost as though he was in pain.

_"What?" _He glanced over at his boyfriend. Blaine was shivering, and his eyes stared at something Kurt couldn't see. "Is something wrong?" he whispered, slightly scared.

"No!" Blaine cried out. "Don't leave me," he whimpered.

"I'm right here," Kurt said, wondering why this phrase frightened him so much.

"Please... I love you," Blaine whispered, tears rolling down his face.

Kurt felt a surge of fierce protectiveness. "What's wrong? Blaine?" He shook Blaine as gently as he could.

_Blaine was frozen again, staring at the scene from the night before, this time in a hallway. "Kurt," he said. "Kurt..." It made no difference. They didn't seem to hear him. Kurt and Karofsky walked away, hand in hand. "No! Don't leave me!" Kurt didn't turn around. "Please... I love you." Something was shaking him, but he couldn't wake up._

Kurt embraced Blaine, hoping that it would get through to him. "Don't worry," he said softly. "It's not real. It can't hurt you." Kurt stroked Blaine's hair.

_Suddenly he felt warm and safe. "Kurt?" he asked hopefully. Slowly, painfully, he fought his way out of the nightmare._

Blaine opened his eyes. "Kurt?" The hand that was stroking his head paused.

"Blaine?"

"Kurt," he said in relief. "You didn't leave me."

"Of course not," Kurt said. "I'm never letting go of you, remember?"

"Never?"

"Never."_  
><em>


	11. Suspicious

A/N: And it all goes downhill from here... Poor Blaine. Kurt has no idea what's going on... You shall see. ;) You guys will most likely hate me for the chapter after this, but bear with me. All will be explained, I promise. Only a few chapters to go with this story. As always, I don't own Glee, and please read and review. Thanks for reading!

Blaine watched as Kurt talked to Karofsky, unable to restrain his jealousy. _He _was the only one who should be making his boyfriend smile like that. Kurt came towards him, opening his locker.

"Hey, Blaine."

"Hi," Blaine said grudgingly.

"Is something wrong?" Kurt asked.

"If you don't know, I'm not going to tell you," Blaine said. He got his books out of his locker, and walked away to his next class.

It was History next, and Kurt sat down next to Mercedes, feeling confused and a little hurt. "I think Blaine's mad at me."

"Why?"

"I don't know."

The teacher was a little late, so they were free to talk.

Mercedes was looking at him oddly. She had a good idea why Blaine might be annoyed with Kurt. "Really?"

Kurt looked at her in surprise. "You mean you do?"

"Well… yeah. It's not that hard to figure out."

"I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. Did I do something wrong?"

"Not exactly," Mercedes said.

"Then what…?"

"You haven't noticed?"

_"No," _Kurt said. "Can't you just tell me?"

Mercedes shook her head. Kurt was her best friend, but sometimes he could be extremely oblivious. "He's jealous, sweetie."

"Jealous?" Now Kurt was really confused. "Why would he be jealous?"

"Well, you and Karofsky have been spending a lot of time together, lately." Mercedes didn't quite understand why Kurt put up with him, but she was pretty sure it had nothing to do with the reasons Blaine thought. It seemed more likely that Kurt felt sorry for his former bully.

"So? We're just friends, Cedes."

"_I _know that, but does Karofsky?"

"Yeah…"

"I'm not so sure about that."

"There's no reason for Blaine to be jealous," Kurt assured her. "Dave needs help right now, and I feel like I can be a good influence on him."

"I'm sure that would be fine, if that's all Karofsky thought it was."

"He knows that Blaine is my boyfriend."

"That doesn't mean he doesn't like you as more than a friend."

"Except that it does." He couldn't see why Mercedes was being so difficult about this.

Mercedes sighed. If Kurt wouldn't be convinced, she was going to have to go into more detail. "He was checking you out yesterday, Kurt." She hadn't believed Blaine at first, but now she was sure he was right. And Kurt needed to know before he did anything that might mess up his relationship with Blaine.

"I think you must a little confused."

"I know what I saw."

"No. No way." He knew she was wrong, but she was probably right that that was the reason Blaine was mad at him. He'd just have to talk to his boyfriend and reassure him that nothing was going on between him and Dave.

"Okay," Mercedes said. "Don't believe me. But that's how it looks to me, and I'm pretty sure that's how it looks to Blaine too."

"Thanks for telling me," he said. "But it's not what you think."

She looked at him pityingly. If he refused to see what was there, she was afraid he would get himself in the middle of more drama than he could handle.

After school, Kurt met Blaine at his car as usual. "Can we talk?"

Blaine was feeling guilty for how he'd treated Kurt earlier. "Sure."

They drove to the picnic table, so that they could talk in private.

Kurt felt unaccountably nervous as he sat down across from Blaine. "Are you mad at me?"

Blaine sighed. "No. I'm just… I don't know. I'm being stupid, I guess."

"What do you mean?" Kurt asked. Why would Blaine think he was stupid?

Blaine looked up at the sky. "When I look at you, I feel so happy. I want to make you smile all the time, to make you laugh… to give you everything I can."

Kurt felt a rush of affection for him. "But?"

"But an unfortunate side effect of that is that I get jealous easily. I see you with Karofsky, and _he _makes you laugh. And I just…" He looked back at Kurt. "I get so jealous I could scream."

Kurt gave a small smile. Mercedes had been right, as usual. "There's no reason for that, Blaine. You're the only one I want."

"I know," he said. "And that should be good enough for me, but it's not," Blaine said, full of loathing for his traitorous brain.

"Wait, what?" Kurt was terrified. "Are you breaking up with me?"

"No! Of course not. I love you, remember? It's just something I need to work on, I guess."

"Is there anything I can do?" Kurt asked.

"Not talk to any other guy ever again?" Blaine said hopefully.

Kurt laughed. "I don't think that's going to work out. But I promise that I won't ever hurt you if I can help it."

"Thanks," Blaine said. "But seriously… why do you talk to Karofsky so much?"

Why did people keep asking him that? Was it so hard to believe that he could forgive someone, and want to help them? "Because we're friends, Blaine. Because he's going through a hard time right now, and I want to help him accept about himself what you and I already have. And I think you should support that."

Blaine was exasperated. "I do! But I don't think that's all it is for him!" He took a breath. "You need to stop leading him on, Kurt."

"Leading him on? I don't do that sort of thing, Blaine." Kurt was a little angry now. "And who are you to talk? You lead me on for months!"

"Because I didn't realize you liked me! If someone had just told me, I would have seen it a lot sooner!" He lowered his voice, not wanting to make Kurt any angrier than he already was. "And if you recall, _I _actually asked you out in the end. But you don't intend to do that. It's not right, Kurt."

"I told you, we're just friends."

"_You _are just friends, Kurt," he corrected as gently as he could.

"Yes. That's what I just said."

"I mean, he thinks it's more than that."

"No, he doesn't! We're friends! That's _all _it _is!"_ Kurt yelled.

Blaine threw his hands up in frustration. "Not for him!" He tried to calm himself down. "You don't realize how amazing you are, do you?"

Kurt was taken aback by the sudden subject change.

"You're so talented, and beautiful, and kind… and I am not the only guy who sees that about you. Karofsky wants you too, Kurt."

Dave wanted him? He'd bullied him for months last year! "You're being ridiculous, Blaine."

Blaine shook his head. He was just going to have to say it straight out. "You can't see it, can you?"

"See what?"

"What's there."

"And what, exactly, is _there, _Blaine?"

"He's in love with you, Kurt! He's fallen just as hard for you as I have, and someday soon, he's going to try to take you from me! And I can't let that happen!" He was breathing hard, unable to understand why Kurt was being so blind.

Kurt was stunned. In love with him? That didn't make any sense. Dave knew that he had a boyfriend. He wasn't expecting anything to happen. Was he?

"I- I- That's-" He didn't know what to say. "Why do you think that?"

Blaine laughed softly. "Have you seen the way he looks at you?"

"Honestly, I've never really noticed him looking at me any particular way," Kurt said.

_And there's the problem_. _You'd never even consider the idea that someone liked you unless you liked them first. _"Of course you haven't. But he looks at you the same way I do, Kurt. The only difference is that I'm going out with you."

"That's not true," Kurt said. "The difference is that I'm in love with you. And that's not going to change."

Blaine hoped he was right. "I love you, Kurt."

"I know."

"I just… I can't lose you." He felt sick at the thought. "I can't live without you. Not anymore."

Kurt put his hand on top of Blaine's. "And you'll never have to."

Blaine would hold on to that thought in the weeks to come.


	12. Take All That I Have

A/N: This one doesn't really need any explanation. Just be prepared to be heartbroken and confused. At least, you will if I wrote it the way I meant to. I don't own Glee, but I try to make the story good anyway. Thanks for reading, and please review.

"Hey, Blaine?"

"Yeah?" Blaine turned around with a smile.

"Can I ask you something?"

Blaine had a sinking feeling in his stomach. "What?"

Kurt bit his lip. "Dave asked me to tutor him in Calculus."

_Damn. He's better at this than I thought._ Blaine was impressed by Karofsky's cunning. Playing the kid who needed help seemed innocent, and Kurt would never suspect that Karofsky really just wanted to be alone with him.

"Oh?"

"I wanted to make sure you were okay with it."

Blaine was touched. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I thought that you were afraid of him trying to steal me or something."

Kurt wasn't quite as naïve as he thought. "I am. But I trust you, Kurt. If you want to do this, I'm not going to try to stop you."

"Well, I had an idea."

"Yeah?"

"I thought that maybe you could study with us." Since his talk with Blaine, Kurt had been trying to think of a way to reassure his boyfriend that there was nothing going on between him and Dave. He thought that maybe if Blaine spent more time with him, he'd see that Dave wasn't such a bad guy.

Blaine was surprised and pleased. "Sure! I'd love to." He'd be jealous, but he would feel a lot better if he could be there to make sure Karofsky wasn't acting inappropriately toward Kurt.

"Cool." Kurt smiled and took his hand. "We'll stay behind after school then?"

"Yep. You can help me with my French."

"Great. That'll be fun," Kurt said, smiling a little bit.

Blaine looked at him suspiciously. "Are you teasing me?"

"Maybe a little."

"I'm rather offended, Hummel," he said jokingly.

"Well, I'm terribly sorry, Anderson," Kurt said in a flawless, gentlemanly Southern accent. "But your French is terrible."

"Hence the fact that I am asking for your help."

Kurt kissed him on the cheek. "I'd be happy to help you."

They met Karofsky in the library after their last class finished.

"Hey, Dave."

Karofsky looked up hopefully, and his face fell when he noticed that Kurt wasn't alone.

"Hi, Kurt." His voice turned less welcoming. "Blaine."

"Hey." Blaine made sure to keep his voice light. He would be the better man, even if he felt like punching the guy every time they were in the same room. "How's it going?"

"Great," Karofsky said sarcastically. "Everything's perfect." He stabbed his pencil into the page.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked in concern.

"I'm fine."

Kurt sat down next to Karofsky, and Blaine took the seat on Kurt's other side.

"So, how's the homework going? You seem to be doing all right," Kurt said.

"It's okay, mostly. Could you look at this one, though? I can't figure it out." Karofsky pointed to one of the problems on his sheet, and Kurt leaned over to examine it. Karofsky looked at him tenderly, the way he did with no one else, and it made Blaine's heart hurt. He knew how it felt to have a crush on someone who didn't like you back, but he wasn't willing to give his boyfriend up, especially to the person who'd once made Kurt's life hell.

Blaine started to work on translating the sheet he'd been given for French homework. It wasn't going well.

"Could you help me with this, Kurt?"

"Yep," Kurt said cheerfully.

Kurt looked over what he'd done so far, and pointed out a few mistakes.

Blaine finished the sheet with Kurt's help, then asked Kurt to read it so that he could get the pronunciation right.

Kurt read it out easily, sounding like he'd been speaking the language all his life. Blaine looked at him in admiration.

"Je suis tellement allumé en ce moment."

Kurt laughed. "How long did you practice saying that?"

Blaine blushed. "A while."

Kurt looked pleased. "Merci. Tu est très chaud aussi."

Karofsky was looking at them in confusion. "What did he say?"

"You probably don't want to know," Kurt told him.

"No, really."

Blaine was annoyed with him for ruining their moment. "I said, 'I'm so turned on right now.' And _my boyfriend_ said, 'Thanks. You're pretty hot too.'"

"Oh," Karofsky said. Kurt didn't seem to notice the look of hatred that he gave Blaine. "You're right. That_ was_ a little too much information."

Blaine felt smug, but Kurt gave him a warning look. "Blaine."

"Sorry." The moment of triumph had been worth it, though.

The study sessions were going pretty well. They met in the afternoons that they didn't have anything else going on, and while Blaine was still jealous, he was reassured that Kurt wasn't planning to run off with Karofsky or anything. Also, his French had become much better recently with all the extra work he'd been doing. So what if his main motive was to hear Kurt speak the language as much as possible? All the practice was improving his grades immensely.

The final bell rang, and Blaine packed up his stuff.

"Blaine? Would you stay behind for a moment?" the French teacher asked.

He turned around, cursing the fact that he had to stay in the room a moment longer than he had to, when he had been looking forward to seeing Kurt as soon as possible. "Yeah. Sure."

"Don't worry, you're not in trouble," she reassured him, misinterpreting his dark expression. "I just wanted to say that I'm pleased that you're doing so well."

"Thanks," he said, and turned to leave.

"Just a minute," his teacher said. "You've improved tremendously over the past few weeks. Have you been getting private tutoring or something?"

He thought of the previous afternoon, which had mostly involved him and Kurt staring at each other adoringly, and Karofsky looking on jealously. "Sort of."

"What do you mean?"

"My boyfriend's been giving me some help."

She looked surprised. "Your boyfriend?"

"Kurt."

"Oh! Of course! He's one of my favorite students. He hasn't been doing your work for you, though, has he?"

"No. Mostly speaking it with me so that I can practice."

"That's all right then," she smiled. "And Blaine?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad that you and Kurt are together. He was absolutely miserable last year, before he left, and he seems much happier now."

He smiled at her. Despite his troubles with French, she really was a good teacher. "Thank you. It's nice to know that some people support us, at least."

She looked sympathetic. "Everyone should. But you're welcome anyway."

He left the classroom, heading for the library. No one ever really used it except for them, and the librarian went home as soon as the final bell rang each day, not even bothering to lock up. It wasn't as if anyone at McKinley was likely to steal, or even read, the books.

Blaine reached the open door of the library, and froze. Kurt was kissing Karofsky, their lips locked together, and the former bully's arms were wrapped around Kurt so tightly that it looked as though he would break. He blinked, sure that he must be back in the nightmare, but this was real. It was as though a blade of ice had pierced his heart, freezing him to the spot. He just had to remain standing there, staring at his worst dreams come true. After a few seconds that seemed to stretch into hours, the spell broke, and he ran.

Blaine had always been a good runner. He used to run track at his old school, before the bullying got so bad that he quit, and he had taken it up again at Dalton. So his feet took him swiftly away from the nightmare scene, without his brain even having to direct them. Unfortunately, this left him free to dwell on what he had witnessed, which repeated in his mind endlessly, torturing him with the proof that Kurt had been lying to him this whole time.

He hated himself for not being able to stay, not confronting Kurt. But Blaine couldn't face him, knowing that Kurt didn't love him back. So he ran. And ran. And ran. That's what he was good at, wasn't it? Running away.

Finally he stopped, exhausted. He looked around, not sure where he was. He hadn't exactly been paying attention to his surroundings. Somehow his feet had taken him to the picnic table, the place where he had spent so many happy hours. _Fuck you,_ he told his feet. They'd betrayed him, just like everything else.

He collapsed on the bench. It wasn't as if he'd be any worse off here than any other place he might go. He choked back a sob. _What am I supposed to do without him?_

Even though his boyfriend didn't give a damn about him, Blaine knew he'd never be able to let Kurt go. _I love him. I can't change that, no matter how hard I try._ He wiped a hand across his face, smearing the traitorous tears across his cheeks. _I hate you, _he thought. _Stupid heart. _He'd never known it before, but the phrase "heart break" was almost a literal sensation. For him, it wasn't quite as though his heart was breaking. It was as though it was being ripped out of his chest, slowly and painfully, and if the ripping just stopped, if he was empty of this pain, he'd be glad to see it go.


	13. Just To Get You Back

A/N: I know that the last chapter was quite torturous, so I didn't want you guys to wait too long for the next update. All will be explained now. ;) As always, I don't own Glee. Please read and review, if you can. Thank you so much for reading!

Kurt looked at his phone. Blaine was seven minutes late. Dave didn't look particularly unhappy about this. He knew that Blaine thought he was completely oblivious to the tension between them, but Kurt was aware of how much Blaine disliked his friend, who seemed to return Blaine's antagonism with equal force.

"Where is he?" Kurt asked in frustration. "If he couldn't come, he could have at least texted."

"I don't know, maybe he doesn't care enough to let you know where he is."

"No, that can't be it," Kurt said. "Something must have come up at home."

Dave rolled his eyes. "You're always making excuses for him."

"What are you talking about? I've never made excuses for him." Kurt sighed, wishing Blaine was here. "He's never needed them."

"He's not good enough for you," Dave told him.

"Dave-"

His friend was looking at him tenderly. "He doesn't deserve even part of you."

Kurt had that sinking feeling, the one you get when you realize that you told someone a lie without meaning to. _I'm sorry, Blaine, _he thought. His boyfriend had been right all along, and he'd denied it to himself, because he didn't want to assume anything, didn't want to have to face being wanted without wanting back.

Dave moved closer, then kissed him.

_Kurt was back in the locker room, confronting Karofsky. He shouted at his bully, wishing for it just to stop, to be left alone. Then the kiss, a crushing attack, worse than anything that had ever happened to him. Worse than being shoved into lockers, than being called a fag. Worse, even, than being rejected time and time again, falling in love with someone who would never love him back. **Blaine**_, _he thought, remembering the boy who'd given him hope. **Help me.**_ _But Blaine wasn't there. It was just him and Karofsky_-

Kurt pulled away. His slap echoed across the room. "What the _fuck _do you think you're doing?"

Dave shrank back. "I'm sorry," he said in a tiny voice.

"For what?" Kurt shouted. "For kissing me? For completely ignoring that I have a boyfriend, that I'm in love with him? For pushing me into the lockers every time you saw me, because you couldn't take who you really are? For hurting me, because I was everything you wished you could be? For making me run away from everything I cared about? For-" he broke off, too angry to speak any more.

"I thought-"

"No, you didn't," Kurt said bitterly. "And neither did I."

He got up to leave.

"Wait," Dave said. "Just listen to what I have to say."

Kurt turned around at the pleading voice. He folded his arms and tapped his foot, wanting to get out of there and find Blaine as soon as he could. "What could you possibly say that would make this okay?"

"I'm sorry, Kurt," he said sadly. "For everything. For pushing you into lockers, for forcing you out of this school... for caring about you." His voice broke. "I thought you cared about me too."

Kurt felt sorry for him. "I did." He sighed, trying to sort out the mess of emotion inside himself. "I do. But I love Blaine. I always will."

"Goodbye, Kurt." It was soft, but painfully final.

"Goodbye, Dave." He walked out of the library, not looking back to see the heartbroken expression on his former friend's face.

Kurt texted Blaine, but his boyfriend didn't text back. _Did I do something wrong? _he wondered. _Where is he? Why isn't he here?_

When he got home, Kurt called Blaine's house. His mother picked up. "Anderson residence. May I ask who's calling?"

She sounded very formal, and Kurt suddenly understood where Blaine got his impeccable phone manners. "It's Kurt. Is Blaine there?"

"No..." she sounded worried. "Wasn't he supposed to be studying with you?"

"I thought so, but he didn't show up."

"Do you think something happened?" she asked, probably thinking the same thoughts as him. Kurt was beginning to worry that Blaine had been attacked, or hit by a car or something.

"I hope not. I'll call some of my friends and see if any of them know where he is. I'm sure he's fine, though," Kurt said, trying to reassure himself as much as her.

"You're probably right. Call me back when you find him."

"I will."

He hung up, then dialed Mercedes' number. After he had called all of the Glee club, even the ridiculous ones like Lauren and Rachel, with no one having seen Blaine, he was really scared. _If he's hurt, I'll never forgive myself._

"I'm going out," Kurt called to his Dad.

"Where?" his Dad asked.

"I'm not sure!" he said, feeling desperate. "See you later!"

"Kurt!"

He ran outside, racking his brain for any place Blaine might have gone. _Maybe he's at the picnic table? _Kurt couldn't think why that would be, but Blaine hadn't been anywhere else, and he was running out of places to search.

The sun was setting, and it was beginning to get cold, but he didn't care. He sprinted the few blocks to the the place next to the stream, which he associated with happiness and good memories. But as he got closer, he heard the sobs, which sounded as though Blaine was in terrible pain.

He ran into the clearing. Blaine was slumped at the table, crying as though he had been kicked to pieces, but Kurt couldn't see any bruises or blood on his body.

"Blaine! Are you okay?"

Blaine spun around, hating the way his heart leapt at Kurt's voice. "What are you doing here?" he asked harshly.

Kurt took a step back at the hatred in Blaine's eyes. "I was worried about you. Nobody's seen you since the end of school."

"You don't have to pretend anymore," Blaine said brokenly. "I know."

"Know what?" Kurt said. "What are you talking about?"

"Fuck-" He had meant to say the name, but knew he would break down completely if the word passed his lips. "Still? You're still lying to me? I thought you were better than that."

Kurt had no idea what was going on. What had he done? He couldn't think of anything, except- _Oh no._

"Did you-" Kurt's heart was beating fast, panicked. "You saw the kiss."

"Now he gets it," Blaine said flatly. "How could you-" He took a shuddering breath. "I thought you loved me," he said in a voice filled with despair.

"Oh, Blaine," Kurt said. He was crying now, too. "You didn't see what you thought you saw."

"I saw everything, Kurt." Blaine couldn't believe that he was still trying to deny it.

"Obviously you didn't. Or you would have seen me slap him in the face."

Hope burst in Blaine's chest. "You... slapped him?"

_"Yes," _Kurt said. "And then I told him that I loved you, and said goodbye."

"Goodbye? As in... forever?" Blaine could hardly believe it.

"Pretty much," he said, smiling through his tears.

"I thought I'd lost you."

"I love you, Blaine. That's not going to change. I promised, remember?"

"I"m sorry," Blaine told him, blinking back his tears. "I should have known you'd never do something like that."

"I love you," Kurt said. "Always."

Blaine stood up, and kissed him softly. "I love you too, Kurt. Forever."

Kurt kissed him back, and continued to hold him, not wanting to let go.

Blaine hugged him tightly. "I'll never doubt you again, I promise."


	14. Jealousy

A/N: This is the last chapter. *does a happy dance, cries a little bit* I wrote it a while ago (after the first chapter, actually), and this is where it was always supposed to go. ;) Hopefully you like it. As always, I don't own Glee, despite my plans to take over the world for the benefit of everyone, resulting in peace and harmony and lots of boykissing. Sadly, it hasn't happened yet. I love these characters, and I wish they were mine, but they aren't, they're just incredibly fun to write for. *cries some more* Please review to tell me if you liked it, hated, wished it had ended another way... I love feedback, and don't mind arguing (very eloquently of course) with people if I don't agree. :P This story is the longest thing I've ever written, so I'm glad it's turned out the way I wanted it to. Thank you so much for reading!

PS. Here is the link to the song. youtube .com/watch?v=2bs3EaWejDY That's how I imagine Blaine looking in this chapter (though possibly with slightly shorter hair). Maybe if you watch it, you'll understand Kurt's reaction. ;)

Blaine had been working on the song for quite a while now, and it was finally finished. He asked Mr Schue if he could perform it for the Glee club and the teacher agreed to let him. He had always been impressed with Blaine's performances.

He brought his guitar to school the next day. Glee was last period on a Friday, so he'd be able to talk to Kurt about whether he liked it or not immediately after. He _really _hoped Kurt understood, because he was pretty happy with how it had turned out. It seemed to express his feelings perfectly.

The practice went fairly well, and with about ten minutes left to go, Blaine got up to get his guitar from the corner of the room. Kurt hadn't noticed it before.

"Blaine wants to play a song for us," Mr Schue told the kids.

"What's it called?" Rachel asked.

"Jealousy," Blaine said. He took a deep breath, then began to strum.

_I hate where I'm at_  
><em> Acting crazy like that<em>  
><em> I know that I've been wrong<em>  
><em> It's something I've been working on<em>

Kurt was fairly certain that he'd lost the ability to breathe. The guitar, the lyrics, the shirt... _That shirt. _It was tight, and fit against Blaine's skin pleasingly._  
><em>

_ And I don't know what to do_  
><em> It's changing me it's killing you<em>  
><em> I'd tear out my insides if I could<em>, _I would_  
><em> But I don't know if it'd do me good<em>

_ I'm sorry friends, I'm sorry lover_

He felt a tap on his shoulder, and when he turned around Puck gave him a thumbs up. He turned pink.

_ To put us all in this mess_  
><em> I know we still have each other<em>  
><em> But I'm in distress<em>

_ Cause every time that I feel like I've figured it out_  
><em> I can't seem to figure it in<em>  
><em> It's got nothing to do with me<em>  
><em> It's not even you, you see<em>  
><em> It's part of my chemistry<em>  
><em> It's this jealousy<em>

Jealousy... Despite the problems it had caused them recently, Kurt almost felt like it was worth it to see Blaine like this._  
><em>

_ I'm in absolutely no position_  
><em> To be so needlessly unkind<em>  
><em> When I'm the one writing this fiction<em>  
><em> I make it real in my mind<em>

_ It drives me crazy in the morning_  
><em> Who is this monster in the mirror<em>

He was pretty sure that Blaine's definition of a monster was very different from his own. If Blaine was a monster, what hope did the rest of them have?

_ I try to get the steam to fog it out_  
><em> But I just can't get it clear<em>

_ Oh and I just can't stand what I'm feeling_, _no_  
><em> It's just like poison in my veins<em>  
><em> I know that I'm speaking<em>  
><em> But I don't know what I'm saying<em>

_ Cause every time that I feel like the world just got lighter_  
><em> It seems like my muscles give out<em>

He sounded so helpless, and Kurt just wanted to hug him.

_It's got nothing to do with me_  
><em> It's not even you, you see<em>  
><em> It's part of my chemistry<em>  
><em> It's this jealousy<em>

_ And I'm hearing your voice_  
><em>That you know it's your choice<em>  
><em> Maybe so<em>  
><em> And I know it's no use<em>  
><em> But it's the only excuse<em>  
><em> That I know, no nooo<br>_

Poor Blaine. Kurt understood now what his emotional blindness had been putting his boyfriend through, but Blaine didn't even seem to blame him. He felt a pang of sadness. _How did I ever deserve someone so amazing?  
><em>

_ Let me go_  
><em> Let me go<em>  
><em> Oh let me go<em>  
><em> Oh let me go, let me go now please<br>_

_ Now let's be real I feel just like a child_

A few of those watching laughed, Blaine looked so self-deprecating and shameful.

_ Someone could be taking all my toys_  
><em> So call me dumb, call me wild<em>, _call me wild_  
><em>But that's the thing with little boys<em>

_ Oh now I can't get it out in the shower_

_Oh._ The thought of Blaine in the shower pushed him over the edge. _Is it hot in here?_ he thought. He was pretty sure it was unseasonably warm for this time of year. He looked around to see if anyone had noticed his reaction. Santana winked at him, glancing at his hands, which were very strategically placed. Apparently it had not gone unnoticed. _Damn it._

_ Or drink it off at the bar_  
><em> This sugar's gone sour<em>  
><em> And it's gone way too far<em>

_ Cause every time that I feel like I'm riding so high,_  
><em> Feel on top of the world<em>  
><em> The bitch just keeps telling me no<em>

He wasn't sure whether to be offended or extremely turned on, but he didn't really seem to have a choice in the matter. Blaine swearing just did things to him. _Sexy, sexy, things. _He wouldn't be surprised if he were drooling.

_ It's got nothing to do with me_  
><em> It's not even you, you see<em>  
><em> It's part of my chemistry<em>  
><em><em>And oh Christ it's<em> killing me_  
><em><em>This demon is<em> filling me_  
><em> It's this jealousy<em>  
><em> Oh, and I just can't believe<em>  
><em> In this jealousy,<em>  
><em> This jealousy for you<em>  
><em> Oh this jealousy,<em>  
><em> This jealousy for you<em>

Blaine finished, and the club were, for once, stunned into silence. Then they began to clap. Blaine smiled modestly, but Kurt knew him well enough to see that he knew exactly how good the performance had been.

"That was incredible, Blaine," Mr Schuester said. "Who is the song by?"

"Me," Blaine replied.

"What?" the teacher said. He seemed to think he'd misheard.

"I wrote it. For Kurt."

"_Wow. _I wish we'd had you here when we were writing original songs for Nationals."

"Hey!" Rachel said. "We had very good songs for Nationals. Didn't we, guys?" She looked around the group, waiting for someone to back her up. They all looked away guiltily. "Traitors," she muttered under her breath.

"But that's the emotional pain you need to write good songs," Mr Schue said.

Kurt rolled his eyes. It was just like his teacher to miss the entire point of the song and concentrate on how it could be used to their advantage in winning a competition.

The bell rang, and Kurt walked out of the room with Blaine.

"Was it okay?" Blaine asked worriedly.

"It was... wow."

Blaine did that adorable head-shaking smile that he used whenever he'd been complimented.

"One problem, though. I may have been mistaken, but did you call me a bitch?" He tried to sound angry, but wasn't sure if he succeeded.

"It was, um... a metaphorical bitch."

"A 'metaphorical bitch'? That makes no sense, Blaine."

"I meant it like, 'fate keeps screwing me over', basically. Every time I feel happy, something seems to happen to knock me down." He looked sad for a moment.

"I'm sorry," Kurt told him.

"It's not your fault. Like I said in the song, I'm an idiot."

"No, you're not. I shouldn't have put you through that."

Blaine didn't want to argue with him. "Lets just put it behind us," he said.

Kurt took his hand. "That seems like a good idea."

Kurt drove them to his house, hoping that his parents would be home late that evening.

There were no cars in the driveway. He unlocked the front door, and called: "Hello?" No one answered. "I guess it's just us," he said. "You want to go up to my room?"

Blaine's eyes widened. "Sure!"

They went upstairs, and Blaine sat on his bed.

_Finally, _Kurt thought.

Kurt was looking at him in a way that Blaine had never seen before. "What's up?" Blaine asked. Kurt was staring at his lips. He recognized the expression now. Hunger. Kurt looked like a predator about to pounce. "Do I have something on my face?" he asked.

Kurt moved forward, and started kissing him roughly, sliding his hands under Blaine's shirt.

Blaine pulled back. "Wait, what?"

"Less talking, more kissing," Kurt said distractedly.

"Just a second," Blaine objected.

Kurt folded his arms impatiently. "What?"

"What brought this on?"

"Why?" What was with these pointless questions?

"I need to know," Blaine said, "so that I can do whatever it was _all the time_."

Kurt didn't have time for this. "Sweaty, jealous, _swearing..._" he breathed.

Blaine was slightly confused. Sweaty he could understand, jealous, maybe, but _swearing?_"

"_Fuck, _Blaine," Kurt gasped, unable to understand why his boyfriend was ruining this with unnecessary talking.

And Blaine had a flash of comprehension about Kurt's reaction to the swearing.

Kurt pushed him backwards onto the bed, kissing him harder. Blaine reciprocated this time, just as eager as Kurt.

"Why are you still wearing clothes?" Kurt asked harshly. "Too many clothes." Blaine completely understood the sentiment.

Kurt attempted to pull off Blaine's shirt, and wait, he'd been _serious? _Blaine lifted his arms helpfully, so that Kurt could take the shirt off, then started undoing the buttons on Kurt's jacket. He usually loved his boyfriend's sublime fashion sense, but it got in the way in situations like this.

Finally, the top half of Kurt's body was bare. They started kissing again, and Blaine was pretty sure shirtless kissing was his new favorite thing to do. Kurt ran his hands over Blaine's chest, and Blaine shuddered. "_Fuck, _Kurt."

This went on for a little longer, then Kurt's hands traveled lower, pushing at his jeans. If Blaine had known swearing was all he had to do to get this to happen, he would have done it a _long _time ago.

Blaine's pants came off successfully, and he tried to do the same for Kurt. "Why'd you pick _today _of all days to wear skintight jeans?"

"It was rather a bad idea in hindsight, wasn't it?" Kurt said shakily. He stood up and peeled off the insanely tight red jeans. Blaine watched him avidly, his mouth hanging open slightly.

Kurt licked his lips, then moved to stand between Blaine's legs. Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt, his hands moving over the smooth expanse of skin, and Kurt kissed him, slipping his tongue into Blaine's mouth. He pushed forward, and Blaine leaned back against the bed, moaning in ecstasy. He slid his hand under the waistband of Kurt's briefs-

There was a knock at the front door.

Blaine jerked his hand away, and Kurt rolled off him onto the bed.

"Kurt?" came Burt's voice from outside. "Can you let me in?"

"_Shit!" _Kurt gasped. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, _fuck._"

"Coming!" he called downstairs. Blaine snorted, and Kurt glared at him. "I'll be down in a minute!" he added.

They pulled on their clothes hastily, and Kurt fixed his hair. His dad would definitely know something was up if it was out of place.

Kurt moved to the door to go downstairs, but Blaine remained sitting. "Come on, Blaine. My dad will get suspicious if we take too long."

"I'll, um, be there in a minute."

Kurt glanced down. "Oh, right. Um... just... yeah. Come down when... you have that sorted out." The similar problem he might have had had been effectively killed when he'd heard his dad's voice.

Blaine blushed. It was barely visible, due to his tanned skin, but his expression was absolutely priceless. "Sorry."

"It's fine." He couldn't keep from laughing a little bit, and Blaine made an embarrassed face at him.

Kurt went downstairs to open the door. "Hi, Dad."

"Hey, kid."

Blaine appeared at the bottom of the stairs soon after. "Hi Mr Hummel."

"I told you to call me Burt, Blaine."

"Sorry," Blaine said guiltily.

"So, how was your day?"

"Pretty good," Kurt said. "We had a lot of Calculus homework, though."

"That's too bad. I don't think they should give you work on Fridays, personally."

Blaine agreed. He could think of a lot of things he would rather be doing.

"So we should probably get back to what we were doing before," Kurt said. Blaine looked at him in alarm. "The Calculus, I mean."

Burt laughed slightly. Kurt wasn't as good at lying to him as he thought, and Blaine was even worse. "Sounds good. Do you want to stay for dinner, Blaine?"

"Um, sure."

"It should be ready in about an hour," Burt said.

They went back upstairs. Blaine was torn between embarrassment and disappointment.

"Damn," Kurt said. "I wish my dad had come home, like, an _hour _later."

Blaine decided on an unreasonable frustration with Kurt's dad.

"Next time, I guess," Blaine said.

"_Definitely."_


End file.
